"A wee bit special"

That's how Walter Smith described retaining the SPL title, after a 1-0 win at Hibs.

To make it all the more satisfying for the old man, the goal came from Kyle Lafferty, Smith's most criticised signing, who has rarely looked worth the £3.5m the club paid for him.

So credit where it's due - Rangers might have flopped badly in the Champions League group stage (again, though Walter Smith is used to that), they might have surrended the Scottish Cup too easily, and Celtic might have shot themselves in both feet this season, but they kept their eyes on the prize in the league, and came through with three games to spare.

Despite his achievements, there's no guarantee Smith or his management team will stay on next season. Off the field, Rangers are in a real mess - in debt by at least £30m, with a tough austerity plan imposed by their bank to try and reduce the debt.

The Glasgow Herald laid out the problems in excrutiating detail - suffice to say, unless a new buyer can be found soon (and that looks very unlikely), there will be no spending spree on the squad this summer.

Any potential buyers have been put off by a tax claim from Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, which seems to believe that Rangers have been avoiding paying tax on payments to players by shuffling money through off-shore accounts. Despite Rangers being Her Maj's most loyal club, the Revenue seem unwilling to overlook this small matter.

So, despite their triumph, the future isn't looking all that rosy for Rangers. Their predicament does, however, might make the club more willing to listen to ideas to change Scottish football. And this can only be a good thing.

Rangers win the SPL

Well, it's all over now, isn't it? Rangers won the Old Firm derby yesterday and are now 10 points clear - there's no way Celtic are coming back from there.

Tony Mowbray could point out that the match was very even, that maybe a few decisions went against them (fuelling the current sense of injustice at Celtic) - and he'd be right.

But then everyone else could point out that truly clever managers find a way to keep getting results while changing their team. Instead, Celtic have dropped far too many points while Mowbray has tried to get to grips with the job. Walter Smith - a man with his own problems to deal with - has basically mugged him this season.

It means the title race has basically been decided before the split, not what the SPL needs to maintain interest in the rest of the season.

Any consolations? Well, we probably already know the make-up of the top six (Aberdeen look out of it) and Dundee Utd, Hibs, Hearts and Motherwell could yet give us some twists and turns in the battle for two qualifying spots in the Europa League.

And maybe, just maybe, Falkirk will pick themselves up and make a real fight of staying in the Division.

Rangers are the runts of the "easy" group

When the draw for this season's Champions League group stages were announced, the Daily Record pronounced Group G - which Rangers were in - as the "Group of Dull".

Yep, Sevilla, Stuttgart and Unirea Urziceni were all boring, you see, so Rangers would qualify from the group. New chairman Alistair Johnston said as much:

"We go into this campaign feeling, quite rightly, as if we have a realistic chance of making the last 16."

Rangers have fallen so far short that it's barely worth asking where it went wrong. Conceding 10 goals at home - while only scoring 2 - is not down to poor tactics or choosing the wrong personnel, but rather a team hopelessly ill-equipped for the competition.

Having missed out on the Europa League, too, Rangers can now stop heaping further embarassment on Scottish football in Europe and "concentrate on domestic duties", as the old saying goes.

Good. This has been a miserable adventure. The sooner it is forgotten by everyone, the better.

Rangers cut their own throat

Walter Smith says that Scottish football is "in danger of dying".

Well, we're certainly losing the will to live, Watty, if that's what you mean, with the incessant bleating coming from the Old Firm - as this rather fine article by Bob Brannan, Chairman of Dundee FC, makes clear.

Ronnie Esplin picks up the same theme in this piece for STV. No one is denying that Scottish football has problems (this isn't strictly true - we'll return to the head-in-the-sand merchants in a minute), but it's also clear that the stance of the ugly sisters is making things worse. By constantly moaning, they are attacking the morale of a league already suffering from the collapse of their media partner and a general drop in attendances.

Anyhow, judging by last night's performance, Rangers are not dying slowly, but are trying to kill themselves as quickly as possible. Unless they are allowed to join the Romanian League next season, of course. After all, it must be awash with money if their clubs can beat the mighty Gers so easily.

Celtic rue defensive mistakes

You get the impression that Tony Mowbray is not enjoying life at Celtic as much as he hoped. Instead of a team gelling under fresh leadership, Celtic seem to get rattled more and more easily as the weeks go by. This has not been a dream start for the ex-West Brom and Hibs manager.

Of course, the aftermath of an Old Firm derby defeat is always depressing for the losing party, but Mowbray - who normally defends his players in public - was uncharacteristically scathing about them after the match. He didn't mention him by name, but he was clearly seething at Glenn Loovens' performance, especially for letting the ball bounce in the area for Kenny Miller's second goal.

Sunday's first Old Firm meeting of the season exposed Celtic's problems at both ends of the park. Defensively they were a shambles, while upfront they failed to make an impact, despite enjoying lots of possession and facing a patched-up Rangers back line.

With all due credit to Rangers (and Kenny Miller, who once again excelled in this fixture), Celtic really failed to put their stamp on this game. Yes, Shaun Maloney was denied at least one clear penalty, but that doesn't excuse their myriad failings.

Of course, Celtic are also experiencing difficulties in Europe. Getting into the Champions League would always have been a tall order, especially once Celtic were drawn against Arsenal in their second qualifying tie. But the Europa League should be a rather more comfortable environment - instead, Celtic are struggling with just a point from their first two games.

The Celtic board gave Mowbray £4m to sign Marc Fortune over the summer, and N'Guemo has been a fine addition in midfield (albeit on loan), but was that enough? He was willing to listen to offers for Stephen McManus, and probably wanted to reshape the squad more than he was able to.

With their rivals in such dissarray, now would seem an ideal time for Celtic to invest in building a team that could really achieve something under the new management team. Yet again, by not spending money, Celtic seem determined to let Rangers off the hook. They have only themselves to blame.

Rangers favourites for the Cup but problems mount

On the face of it, it was a great weekend for Rangers. They beat Hamilton 5-2, and are now clear favourites to go back to Hampden in May and hold on to their trophy. It could be seen as another step in the development of Ally McCoist, who takes charge of the Cup competitions these days. Meanwhile, Celtic inexplicably got knocked out 1-0 by St Mirren, who they thrashed 7-0 in the SPL a week ago.

This is certainly Ewan Murray's take on things, who reckons that the pressure is now all on Gordon Strachan from now until the next Old Firm encounter, the League Cup Final next Sunday. Absolute shit. Rangers are sinking deeper into the mire, as their problems just keep on getting bigger.

Another Scottish Cup will do little to appease the masses if a 4th straight League title goes across the City. The "peepl" are restless and angry at Rangers continued inability to win the SPL - but that doesn't look like changing anytime soon. Celtic have a 3 point advantage, and after Rangers' failure to take the last derby, confidence that they can repeat last season's late charge to the flag.

Meanwhile, with that £25m overdraft with the bank, Rangers this week asked their staff to consider voluntary redundancy. Busines as usual, according to the club, but everyone else recognises this as yet another sign of money problems at the club.

The only thing likely to keep the fans from baying for blood is winning the SPL. Arguably, Rangers would have been better served by being dumped out of the Cup to conserve resources for the only prize that matters.

Transfer windae update

It seems Kris Boyd's move to Birmingham is off, after failure to agree personal terms. This means one of two things - either Boyd is a greedy bastard who simply asked for too much money; or Boyd doesn't want to leave Rangers, and so set his wage demands unreasonably high so that Birmingham were compelled to reject them.

Alan Hutton was similarly reluctant to move to Spurs last January, until Rangers sweetened the deal to encourage him on his way. With a total of £4m on the table from the Midlands, though, and Killie due a reputed 15% of any transfer due to a selling-on clause, Rangers have much less cash to play with this time around.

Chairman Murray was on the offensive yesterday, saying it was "ridiculous" to suggest Rangers were a selling club. Well, obviously they are (Hutton and Carlos Cuellar being 2 sales in the past 12 months from the first team) and we're about to find out just how much they need some money this month. Chris Burke has gone on a free to Cardiff, but Alan Gow's £250,000 move to Wolves has broken down after he failed a medical. All this after Murray claimed that no one else would be sold apart from Boyd.

Rangers: skint, and looking increasingly desperate.

2009 explodes into life

Aside from the falling-out between Gordon Strachan and Aiden McGeady, 2008 ended a little flat for Scottish football. With no clubs left in Europe, domestic competition is all the clubs have, but the SPL title race is more of a procession this season, and the qualifying campaign for the 2010 World Cup isn't going all that well.

But the opening of the transfer window has thrown some much needed chaos into the mix. Suddenly, it seems there's no hiding place for clubs with debts to pay.

Extraordinarily for a club chasing in the championship race, Rangers have accepted a bid from Birmingham for top scorer Kris Boyd, and seem determined to get him off their books. Extraordinary, that is, unless you remember the transfer of Alan Hutton this time last year, when Rangers practically bribed their full-back to reluctantly accept a transfer to Spurs.

Boyd doesn't seem to want to go either, and the BBC is reporting that talks on personal terms have broken down. It does look as if this transfer has gone too far to fall down now, however.

It's clear that Rangers are skint and need the money... but still not at all clear as to why Walter Smith bought all those forwards in the summer - Kyle Lafferty, Kenny Miller and Andy Velicka - only to now sell Boyd. The lack of Champions League income is really hurting Rangers this season, and another trophy-light season is going to empty the coffers even more. If Ferguson is sold as well, expect the supporters to well and truly lose it.

It's possible that McGeady and Strachan may still kiss and make up, but there's a good chance the winger might still leave by the end of the month. With Rangers imploding and no European football til next season, Strachan will probably calculate that he can sell his most valued asset - and probably Boruc as well, if he wants - and still wrap up 4 in a row.

Meanwhile, tonight Motherwell beat Hearts 1-0, thanks to a goal from Chris Porter - the striker Hearts' boss Csaba Laszlo identified as a signing target. Sod's law, eh? Might teach him not to engage in grubby attempts to unsettle players before playing against them... it's not an attractive trait.

Murray comes out fighting

We all know Rangers have been in the spotlight once again this week, as their humiliating exit from Europe was followed by the sale of Carlos Cuellar to Aston Villa. Both events have caused enormous anger amongst "the people", but yesterday chairman David Murray came out fighting.

Blaming the internet for causing a culture of unfounded gossip which created "mayhem" around the club, Murray took time to remind everyone how much cash he has pumped into the club, much of which he has no hope of recouping.

This is at best disingenuous. The "unfounded gossip" held that, having failed to qualify for the Champions League, Cuellar would go before the end of August. And oh look what's happened. The allegations of asset-stripping are much less easy to justify, but Murray himself must take some responsibility for the disappointment being felt by fans now following the hyperbole that he himself created about the club in happier times. Never shy to boast when things are going well, he must now own up when things are not.

You would have thought he'd have learnt his lesson by now about making promises that he can't keep, but David Murray has now promised that Rangers will win the league this season. Ouch.

Still, the Cuellar money gives a handy boost to Walter Smith's transfer kitty, and if Celtic have beaten them to Glenn Loovens, the signing of Pedro Mendes would be a good one. Without any distractions, Rangers can concentrate on one goal alone this season, rather than stretching their resources across many different competitions.

Any early slip ups, though, and it will be meltdown at Ibrox

Back to school craziness

1st week back for the SPL, and it's all a little crazy. New boys Hamilton, predicted by most (but not we love fitba) to be heading straight back down to Division 1 at the end of the season, are top of the league!

Alright, it won't last, but it's worth having a look anyhow. It's exactly the start they needed... nothing will ease those early nerves better than stringing a few results together.

Meanwhile, Walter Smith says he's "surprised and disappointed" after Carlos Cuellar transferred to Aston Villa.

Hmm, that statement is only half-true, isn't it Watty? No doubt you are disappointed to be losing your best player, but surprised? Speculation was rife that Cuellar would go after Rangers' humiliating exit from Europe in order to help balance the books. And that was before we found out about the release clause in his contract.

The "people" are not at all happy, with talk of demonstrations at the next home game. Possibly led by the you tube radge? (see previous post for link).

Finally, Celtic got another lucky win over St Mirren after JVH fouled his marker yet got awarded a penalty anyhow. The referees campaigned over the summer for better pay - fair enough, but do you think in return we might get them to do their jobs properly?

Rangers still hoping for a party

As things stand, Manchester Utd won't be allowed to parade the Champions League trophy from the top deck of a bus. The trouble in the streets following the UEFA Cup final has scuppered that idea. It would be ironic, no, if Rangers find themselves driving around Govan in the next few days, with potentially 3 domestic trophies to show off.

So to tonight's decider, with Rangers off to Aberdeen and Celtic at Tannadice. A helicopter will be hovering above the North East, ready to swoop down with the trophy as soon as the destination of the title is decided.

We love fitba declared for Rangers some weeks ago, back when they had a 7 point lead, 1 game in hand, and looked unassailable. This may have been premature. Their subsequent wobble (and Celtic's 6 wins in a row) has put the ugly sisters level on points, but Celtic's superior goal difference makes them favourites.

Of course, everyone's assuming Aberdeen and Dundee Utd will just roll over and get beat, but Craig Levein has been particularly outspoken on this issue. Jimmy Calderwood may struggle to motivate a squad he has publicly criticised more than once, but the Arabs are making all the right noises about putting up a fight.

If that happens, Celtic could find themselves with the trickier encounter this evening. And Rangers could still win the title. We've not got it wrong yet.

Throwback UEFA Cup Final proves match too far for Rangers

Last night's UEFA Cup Final was curiously reminiscent of the way European finals used to be. It harked back to a time before football was utterly dominated by money, with clubs from outside the biggest, richest Leagues able to get to the final. Of course, it's new money that is powering the resurgence of Russia's clubs, but Zenit St Petersburg lived up to the reputation of Eastern European clubs in the 80s and early 90s - mysterious, full of players unknown in Britain, and technically superior.

Interesting, too, that both clubs' line-ups would have qualified under Sepp Blatter's proposed 6+5 rule, designed to promote home-grown players instead of foreigners. Zenit, being owned by Gazprom and thus effecively a state-owned club, provide many of the players for the Russian national team, while Rangers have rediscovered how to buy Scottish after years of costly imports got them deeper and deeper into debt.

Rangers were also faithful to the traditional tactics employed by teams in finals - do everything not to lose a goal, and then try and win on penalties. In the old days, this was achieved through liberal use of the backpass to the keeper and cynical tackling from behind - both now outlawed.
Nowadays, it's done by giving one man the responsibility to attack, and instructing everyone else to defend in depth. Walter Smith - after teasing that he might employ a more adventurous line-up - was true to form, setting Rangers up to frustrate and disrupt at all costs.

This has been the plan throughout this campaign, and of course it has worked a treat - just so long as the opponents haven't scored. Last night, we got a chance to find out if there was a Plan B, and the answer was... no, not really.

Zenit finally made their breakthrough in the 72nd minute, and what followed next was bizarre. For the next 4 minutes, a suddenly silent stadium looked on as Smith made notes in his chair, deep in discussion with his assistants. The Rangers fans, who'd been so noisy throughout, had gone silent just when their team needed them most, but then they probably knew by then that the game was up. On the pitch, lacking any direction or encouragement from the dug out, the players looked very, very lost.

At long last, the reaction came, Smith sending on 3 strikers in quick succession to try and rescue the game. But he'd left it too late... Zenit, now full of confidence, mopped up everything with ease, and scored a decisive second goal in injury time. They deserved to win.

Sadly, the match was a reminder of earlier times for different reasons, too. As more and more footage comes out from last night's violence in Manchester city centre, it becomes less and less possible to blame the trouble on a few neds getting angry when one of the large tv screens failed. Hundreds of Rangers fans ran running battles with the coppers, throwing objects and doing much to undermine the "carnival" atmosphere that had been reported during the afternoon.

Few people in Scotland are surprised, sadly. The build up to the match had focused on the racist attitudes of the Russian fans, but the likelihood of trouble if Rangers lost was always there.

The truth, not often mentioned, is that not all Celtic fans behaved in exemplary fashion when they lost the UEFA Cup final in Seville in 2003. But, although there was some bad behaviour, there was little violence.

Today, Rangers should be basking in approval for their achievement in even reaching the final, if not the football they played to get there. Instead, the mindless thuggery of some fans is dominating the media attention.

Ugly anti-football reaches the UEFA Cup Final

Lionel Messi and Adrian Mutu are far from the only people to criticise the way Rangers play football this season, but they can't argue with its effectiveness. After a penalty shoot out in Tuscany last night, Rangers are in the final.

With respect to the rest of the team, at times it was Carlos Cuellar and Davie Weir against Fiorentina, as Rangers hung on and hung on against relentless pressure. Had Christian Vieri come on a little earlier, the chance that fell to him a couple of yards from goal might not have been his first touch and he might have buried it. Had Mutu gone down in the box later on when jostled by two Rangers players, Fiorentina could have had a penalty inside normal time. Ifs and buts, though... Fiorentina couldn't score in 3 and 1/2 hours of football, and Rangers came away with the prize.

Now things get really interesting. For the past few weeks, the European adventure has seemed like a distraction, allowing Celtic to win the past 2 Old Firm derbies and close the gap in the League. Without a doubt, stopping Celtic getting their third title in a row has been the priority for the blue half of Glasgow, and the narrowing race in the SPL - plus the injury list - has caused mounting anxiety.

However, Rangers have now emulated Celtic's achievement in 2003 in reaching the UEFA Cup Final. They came home from Seville empty-handed, save for the beginnings of a tale about how 4 million supporters (or something) created the best final atmosphere ever*.

It's unlikely Rangers will attempt to mythologise their own support in quite the same way. There have been enough distasteful scenes from their travelling support in the past couple of years to make such an attempt pointless. But they might just go to Manchester and win the damn cup. And that will be a far greater prize.

Celtic close the gap, but it's too late

It was a perfect night for Celtic - a first Old Firm win for 19 months (first for Gordon Strachan since the Uncle Watty n Super Ally show arrived back at Ibrox), an absolute belter from Nakamura and the last gasp goal from JvH closing the gap to just one point.

Strachan reckons the title isn't lost yet, and the equation's simple for Celtic now - win every remaining game in the SPL and they may, just may, win the title.

They won't, though. Rangers have got mounting problems with injuries, suspended players and a fair fixture backlog to negotiate, but they're not gonna mess it up now. Uncle Watty may claim he's not prioritising any competition over any other, but he knows without question it's the SPL title that Ibrox craves. Letting Celtic get 3-in-a-row would be simply unpalatable.

Katie Thomson and Bazza Ferguson are banned for the first leg against Fiorentina, making their selection in remaining league games a no-brainer. Rangers will have to cope without player of the year Carlos Cuellar after his sending off, and David Weir also misses a match for his handbags with Gary Caldwell at the end of last night's game (as does Caldwell). Injuries to Lee McCulloch, Charlie Adam and Allan McGregor don't help. But they've got a big enough squad... if Kris Boyd starts against St Johnstone in the Scottish Cup, it will be a clear indication that Uncle Watty is spreading resources in order to keep the League Title in sight.

So a thrilling match last night, full of competitive spice. But it doesn't really change anything.

If Celtic can win the next Old Firm game, though, then things really will get tight.

Are Rangers great or just fucking lucky?

Rangers are into a European semi-final for the first time since 1972 after their second leg win over Sporting Lisbon tonight. Ok, it's the UEFA Cup, not the big one, but still... nae bad for poor wee Scotland, eh?

For an outsider, it looks like a club from one of the poorer leagues in Europe heroically over-coming the odds and sticking it to the big boys. But to those of us who've actually watched them this season, its seems inexplicable. They eventually won 2-0 this evening, but for the first hour Rangers were being battered by a visibly superior team. Then Jean-Claude Darcheville scored an (admittedly fine) break-away goal, and the ITV commentary started talking about a famous mugging. Needing 2 goals, Sporting poured forward, created plenty of chances, but couldn't score. Then substitute Steven Whittaker danced through a tired defence and scored another.

So Rangers are lucky, and they've had their fair share of luck all season, from the last Old Firm game to countless other matches throughout the season. They've frequently played poorly and with little guile, yet managed to put away their chances and keep the opposition out. They turned in possibly their worst performance in 10 years at Easter Road in December, for example, yet had the fortune to face a leaderless Hibs who played even worse.

Yet there is more to it than that. Firstly, Walter Smith has built a big squad that has a bit of talent but a lot of experience. People like Barry Ferguson, David Weir and Christian Dailly have seen it all, while Carlos Cuellar really deserves to be Scottish Player of the Year. But there is also the Uncle Watty and Super Ally show - the managerial duo have got the magic ingredient to making Rangers tick, all right.

First of all, Uncle Watty employs his familiar tactics... five across midfield, centre backs at full back, that sort of thing. Rangers are hard to break down. And then there is the Rangers affect... the boss and his sidekick are both confirmed bluenoses, and they've ensured the rest of the squad are too. The players seem willing to run through walls for the cause... and as the results have come in, the commitment has increased, keeping the run going. It's been a virtuous circle of Proddy graft (that's not sectarian, by the way) and a sense of grievance that this club went for two seasons without a single trophy.

How long will it last? Well, thanks to their extended European and domestic cup adventures, plus a catalogue of postponed fixtures, Rangers now face an immense backlog of matches that will test that squad and those tactics to the limit.

Well, it will if Celtic turn up for the final two Old Firm games. And if not them, surely Fiorentina will prove too much, with Barry Ferguson and Kevin Thomson (two thirds of the first choice midfield) suspended.

But then, who knows? If Rangers really are lucky, a quadruple is on the cards.

Game over - Rangers will take the title

Be in no doubt - Rangers will win the SPL this season. For Celtic to retain their title, Gordon Strachan will have to do what he has so far failed to do, and work out how to beat Uncle Watty's light blues. He'll then have to do the same again in the last Old Firm derby of the season. And then he'll have to hope that Rangers drop more points than them in their remaining 3 fixtures. Never gonna happen, in other words.

Only the most blinkered Rangers fan would deny that they've had a decent slice of luck this season, but that doesn't matter now. You could list at length the games in which Rangers have played poorly, but won because the opposition have been even worse, but it doesn't change the table. They are in driving seat, and that's all they will care about.

So Celtic's 3-in-a-row title aspirations are over, and the inquest will begin as to what went wrong, and whether Strachan is still the man to lead them. Celtic have - with the possible exception of the Champion's League - underperformed this season, after decent investment over the summer. Strachan strengthened the squad, but some of his acquisitions have disappointed - Donati, for instance - while others are forgotten already. The team has frequently been boring to watch, and ground out results against teams they should have steam-rollered.

This weekend, Derek Riordan went public on his "Celtic hell", accusing Strachan of refusing to play him now because he might do well, and therefore embarass the manager for having given him such limited opportunities up until now. Scott Brown - another ex-Hibee - looks a shadow of the player he was at Easter Road, arguably too restricted at Celtic to play his natural game.

It looks like a major re-build is required this summer, rather than some gentle tweaks. Will Strachan be the man to do it?

Rangers march on towards the promised land

Rangers are through to the last 16 of the UEFA Cup, after an ultimately comfortable victory over Hapoel Tel Aviv at Ibrox. The tie finished 5-2 on aggregate, with Rangers scoring 4 at Ibrox to overturn a 2-1 deficit from the 1st leg.

Yet the result represents so much more than just progress in Europe's second cup competition. In many ways, Rangers have now firmly put the turmoil of the first half of the season to bed. But they have also realised that their much vaunted campaign against bigotry has some way to go.

The one positive from Paul Le Guen's brief tenure was the club's progress in this competition. By parting with their French manager in January, the danger was that the momentum gained in the UEFA Cup would grind to a halt as Rangers focused on rebuilding their domestic reputation. By getting through this round, though, anything that happens from here on in the UEFA Cup is a bonus. Walter Smith has shown that he, too, can cope with the demands of European competition.

More startling, though, is the transformation of Barry Ferguson. When Le Guen instructed his captain to play further up the pitch, where his passing and vision could cause more damage to the opposition, Ferguson openly rebelled, chasing the ball deep into his own half and pulling the team out of shape as he did so. A furious Le Guen dropped him, removed the captaincy, and issued a he goes or I go ultimatum. And lost. When Smith asked Ferguson to do the same on Thursday night, he turned in a Man of the Match performance, plundered a brace of goals, and played with a smile on his face.

Nothing better demonstrates the subtle nuances of football management - it is not simply about getting the tactics right, but also about man management, communication and creating the right atmosphere. Put simply, Smith knows how to get the best out of Ferguson. Le Guen did not.

Their reward is a last-16 tie against Osasuna. It was characterised by the BBC interviewer last night as a "massive tie", but only in the sense that it will test Rangers to the limit. With all due respect, Osasuna do not represent the glamour and prestige that Rangers seek to restore their self-image. If they get through, maybe that will come in the next round, where they would crave an appointment with Newcastle.

Yet Smith will know that further progress is not guaranteed. Rangers have been getting impressive results in the SPL, and the final scoreline here was emphatic, but Hapoel - hardly a "big" team themselves - threatened frequently throughout the game. With a more incisive attack, Rangers could have got punished last night. There is much work still to be done on improving this Ibrox side.

Their is work to be done off the field, too. Rangers escaped sanction from UEFA for the behaviour of some of their fans in the first leg in Israel, who were alleged to be making Nazi salutes. UEFA accepted the explanation that they were, in fact, making Red Hand of Ulster salutes. Not that such a thing exists, at least not in Ulster. The photgraphic evidence (try here: http://i18.tinypic.com/3zu44ec.jpg ) might not be enough to convict, but is a deeply unpleasant sight.

Rangers has a facist, right-wing following, however much of a minority they may be. Pretending otherwise does nothing to banish bigotry and racism from the club.

Smith finally confirmed at Rangers, as Scotland lick their wounds

No surprises, then.

After a week of speculation, Walter Smith finally announced himself at a press conference, dressed in the club suit and tie of Rangers, confirming what everyone already knew - that he was the man to try and rescue the club from the indignities of this season and rebuild its reputation. Meanwhile, across Glasgow, the Scottish Football Association instigated legal proceedings against their former employee and the club.

The extraordinary truth is that Rangers and the SFA have still not agreed a compensation package for Smith, who had 18 months to run on his contract, and yet the announcement went ahead anyhow. As a statement of intent, it is a brutal one: when asked about the situation, the Rangers chairman, David Murray, simply said that the amount of compensation requested by the SFA was "unrealistic". Although he expressed hope that the issue can be resolved amicably, he was unapologetic about putting the needs of Rangers above anything else.

But beyond the level of compensation, there is another issue at stake. Smith quite clearly started working for Rangers before resigning from his position as Scotland coach - meaning not only that Rangers tapped him up, but that Smith was then in breach of contract. His new first-team coach, Kenny McDowall, gave the game away first, before Ally McCoist confirmed as much. "There was no hesitation at all, as soon as the manager asked me to come back I agreed", he said, when unveiled as assistant manager on Tuesday. So Smith was already working as the Rangers manager, when the SFA had refused permission for the club to speak to him. The SFA have described these relevations as "interesting". You bet they have.

It is likely that a compromise will be reached before the matter reaches the courts - frankly, the SFA can barely afford an expensive legal battle, and they could do without the distraction when their main priority is finding a new coach. Furthermore, while there is the possibility of further sanctions, it is unlikely the SFA has the appetite for the fight. Docking points or banning them from European competition would be bold assertions of authority, but realpolitik will intervene to ensure that the SFA does nothing that damages the interests of one of its biggest members, thus effectively sweeping the affair under the carpet. This will suit the short term interests of the parties involved, but a precedent has been set that chips away at the basis of the professional game.

What, for example, is now to stop a similar situation occuring between clubs, where a manager simply swaps employers by walking out on one contract and signing another? And while it might seem fanciful to suggest the same could happen with players, with individual registrations still controlled by national associations and FIFA, this seems to be the way the game is headed, with the rules bent to suit the needs of the bigger clubs. Perhaps Rangers will hold a press conference tomorrow to announce the signing of Scott Brown - and when Hibs complain that he is still their player, simply dismiss the quoted transfer fee as "unrealistic". Contracts are surely designed to allow all parties, regardless of their relative wealth, status or power, equal treatment, but they are becoming increasingly easy to circumvent.

Smith, meanwhile, after a cordial but hardly contrite performance at yesterday's press conference, clearly feels that criticism of his move has been unjust, and has tried to pin the responsibility on the SFA, saying that the risk of getting sacked in November if Scotland failed to qualify for Euro 2008 was a key factor in his decision. Apparently, his old bosses had not pushed him hard enough to sign a contract extension, even though - by his own admission - he had told them he was in no hurry to agree a new deal. He also has expressed surprise that the SFA are not showing him more gratitude for turning around Scotland's fortunes. None of which changes the fact that he has walked out on a clear commitment.

Still, what's done is done, and the Smith/McCoist double act, honed over the past 2 years, now faces a new challenge. It is not hard to see the reasons for success at international level, because their personalities do seem complementary. Smith is like your dour uncle - interested in what you've been doing, but you need to be on your best behaviour at all times. McCoist, meanwhile, is the mischevious older cousin, who's a bit naughty, but always fun. It just remains to be seen how it translates to the daily routine of club management, rather than the intermittment nature of the international set-up. McCoist has spoken about this being his dream start in management, but - at the age of 44 - he's not exactly a quick starter. Most of his contemporaries who went into coaching have around a decade's experience by now. Smith, meanwhile, is 58, and taking on a stressful and all-consuming job. Experience is great, of course, but the job will also require large reserves of energy.

Meanwhile, the search is on for a new Scotland manager. The SFA have indicated they will go for a home-grown appointment again, and such is the shortage of available talent that Graeme Souness has been spoken about in some circles as a front runner. If that's the case, Scotland really are in trouble.

Rangers: it's 1991 all over again

No manager, out of the title race, out of the CIS Cup, out of the Scottish Cup, a divided and dispirited squad, and a chairman who wants to sell up. Rangers Football Club is in a mess, alright.

Predictably, the crisis at Ibrox has dominated the Scottish sports media over the weekend, fuelled by a lacklustre defeat at the hands of Dunfermline, a team who (up until Sunday) couldn't beat an egg. Another piece of silverware gone.

Everyone seems to agree that Walter Smith is going to be announced as the new boss on Monday, which gives the story an added dimension as we wonder what will happen to the Scotttish national team, who currently top their Euro 2008 qualifying group thanks to Smith's astute management. He is predicted to head a new management structure variously comprising Ally McCoist, Ian Durrant and Stuart McCall, a set-up that could only be more true blue if Gazza was brought in as fitness coach. Rangers are recoiling from their failed experiment with a continental coach and are turning to the old boys network to run the team and recruit some more Scottish players. In fact, David Murray has said there will never be another foreign manager again.

If the predictions are right, and lure of Govan proves too strong, Smith should forget about continuing the Scotland job part-time. Walking away from his contract is bad enough; the SFA shouldn't compound the problem by leaving a man in charge who cannot give the job the whole-hearted commitment it needs.

Opinion on Le Guen's brief time in charge is split. The majority view is that he was rubbish and deserved to go. Several stories have claimed that he wanted out, either because he was lining himself up for the PSG job, or simply because he'd had enough grief and didn't have the bottle to carry the job through.

There is a sizeable minority of Rangers fans, though, who regret that his attempt to reform the club from top-to-bottom have ended prematurely. Arsene Wenger, after all, had indifferent results early in his Arsenal career, but maintained the unshakeable faith of his board. Paul Le Guen, it seems, did not. His sacking of Ferguson seemed a provocative last act, to find out how much support he had. His chairman, horrified by the divisions in the dressing room and the lack of progress on the field, had lost his belief. The transfer window had brought things to a head - a journalist in France has claimed that PLG was not promised the funds he needed, and quite clearly his plan to offload Ferguson was not met with approval either.

Smith, however, will get more backing - Andy Webster has already joined on loan, after a disappointing 4 months at Wigan, but apparently injured himself in training and will be out for 4 weeks. Other than him, all the usual (Scottish) suspects have been linked to Rangers - Scott Brown, Paul Hartley, Russell Anderson. That's probably £4m.

How Murray must despair at his predicament. £4m is peanuts in the Premiership, but money that Rangers simply don't have - it will be coming out of Murray's own pocket, at a time when he really wants to cut his losses and get out of the club. While foreign investors are snapping up Premiership clubs left right and centre, Rangers have been openly for sale for over a year without any progress. Even the £50m dowry that Murray put in to pay off the debts has failed to attract any attention for the Scottish bridesmaid.

Meanwhile, they have a season to salvage, and the irony of the radical change in direction towards the homeland is that there is only one trophy left to compete for - the UEFA Cup. And it was lack of success in Europe that persuaded Murray to let Walter Smith go last time. But that was then, when domestic trophies were easy and progress in Europe seemed elusive. Now Rangers are still involved in a European competition after Christmas for the 2nd year in a row, while still humiliated by Celtic at home. How times have changed.