Chris Jack: 'Well-known & respected' Rangers shareholder to be Ibrox regular under Gilligan

George Letham is expected to be a regular at Ibrox as he carries out an advisory role for Rangers under new chairman John Gilligan, according to Chris Jack.

The Rangers Review journalist reported for the outlet’s website on 17 September that the 4.98 per cent shareholder will have an involvement “going forward” after John Bennett’s sudden resignation on health grounds.

Gilligan is set to continue the hunt for a replacement to James Bisgrove at CEO as a priority during his temporary stint as chairman, after the Englishman “stunned” the club by leaving for the Saudi Pro League in the summer [Scottish Sun, 30 May].

Dave King has touted himself for a two-year return as chairman following Bennett’s exit [Rangers Review, 15 September, but he is expected to be turned down by the current Ibrox board [Daily Record, 16 September].

George Letham is Rangers advisor as Dave King on the outside

It appears the Light Blues are going to be moving forward with something of a skeleton crew at the top of the hierarchy, with those involved doing so out of obligation in a time of need.

That seems far from ideal so even if King is going to be kept on the outside looking in there is an obvious need for appointments to be made on greater than a short-term basis.

It remains to be seen whether links to Adrian Bevington [David Tanner, 10 September] as potential new chief executive develop into concrete talks in the wake of Bennett’s exit.

The former chair had reached an advanced stage of talks with St Mirren’s Jim Gillespie before the latter turned the job down [Daily Mail, 10 September], although it is unclear whether he had any idea of Bennett’s imminent departure.

If Gilligan is looking for a new CEO rather than a replacement for himself that position will presumably be the first of a number of empty spots filled, with no head of academy or sporting director in place either.

Clearly there is a glaring need for a new, competent CEO to come in, with the Ibrox building work debacle kicking off a chaotic few months as Bennett was forced to cover the role at short notice, and Ibrox News pundit Derek Ferguson suggested Bisgrove might have bolted to the Middle East because he saw was coming down the line.

That particular episode is set to come to an end with the first game back in Govan against Dundee at the weekend, but qualified permanent leaders are needed as soon as possible to stabilise the club before something similar goes awry.

In other Rangers news, a Sky Sports pundit has issued a verdict on top appointments at Ibrox after someone was hired and rapidly fired again.

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