Keown predicts Rangers-bound chairman already signed off on one behind-the-scenes deal

Malcolm Offord must have signed off on the appointment of Nils Koppen as the technical director at Rangers, Gary Keown has claimed.

The 60-year-old is set to be named the Gers’ chairman alongside the arrival of Patrick Stewart as the new chief executive officer [Rangers Review, 23 November].

Koppen was given more authority recently [BBC, 19 November], having joined the Light Blues as director of football recruitment earlier this year, and writing in the print edition of the Scottish Mail on Sunday [24 November, pg 87], Keown believes that Offord would’ve likely had a say in the Dutchman’s promotion.

“Philippe Clement has lost the plot at Rangers. Yesterday’s 1-1 draw with Dundee United changes little — other than making it all the more peculiar that Nils Koppen was promoted to technical director,” he wrote.

“Surely, the new CEO, along with oncoming chairman Malcolm Offord, should have had to sign that off as part of some wider strategy for the football department.”

Nils Koppen Rangers promotion raised eyebrows

Koppen’s appointment as technical director raised some eyebrows amongst the Ibrox faithful, with many unsure whether the Dutchman is capable of handling the task.

The 39-year-old made his way to the Glaswegian club in January 2024 and has seen his stature rise quickly.

Koppen was only a scout at PSV before making his way to the Bears, and the transfer business in the summer didn’t enamour many supporters.

Rangers have struggled to make a mark this season, sitting third in the Scottish Premiership, 11 points behind table toppers Cletic.

While Clement needs to take a fair share of the blame for being unable to bring the best out of the team, he hasn’t been helped by the Bears’ shoddy recruitment.

Connor Barron, Vaclav Cerny and Nedim Bajrami have proved to be astute signings, but the Gers have failed to address the issue regarding a centre-forward.

Cyriel Dessers has repeatedly shown that he’s unreliable, and while Hamza Igamane is an exciting prospect, the Moroccan isn’t the finished article.

It would be surprising to learn that Offord and Stewart had no say in Koppen’s appointment so close to their arrival at Rangers.

With the Light Blues finally getting things in order at the boardroom level, hopefully, the tide will turn at Ibrox in the coming months.

In other Rangers news, Chris Sutton has taken a swipe at the Bears after Celtic’s win against Hearts.

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