10 Greatest Rangers FC Managers Ever
3. Scot Symon
Scot Symon was a quiet and reserved man who had been a Rangers player under legendary manager Bill Struth. By the time he was chosen to succeed the great man in 1954, Symon had proved himself not only a very good player but also a manager with the right pedigree for the job.
Rangers won six Championships under him, including back-to-back League and Cup Doubles in 1962-63 and 1963-64. Scot Symon was also the manager of Rangers when in October 1956 they played their first-ever match in the European Cup.
Despite his success, the manner of his dismissal was a shock. Symon was sacked in November 1967 at the age of 58 after rejecting a move to make him a general manager and let a younger man run team affairs. He left with the Rangers at the top of the League.
2. Walter Smith
Walter Smith is an icon of Rangers. He led the club to their famous nine-in-a-row triumph and hauled a comparatively modest squad to the 2008 UEFA Cup Final, perhaps his greatest achievement. During two spells in charge of the Glasgow club, he won 10 league titles and 5 Scottish Cups.
He started out as Graeme Souness’ assistant in 1986, as Rangers entered an era of utter dominance in Scotland. Smith took sole charge in 1991 and led the club on its march to nine successive league titles, of which he won seven. Scottish Cups and League Cups were also bagged along the way, including during a run of seven straight domestic trophies.
He returned to Ibrox in 2007, with the club in disarray after Paul le Guen’s disastrous managerial reign, and he steadied the ship immediately. He guided the club to three league wins in a row from 2009 to 2011, usurping Celtic in the process.
1. Bill Struth
Bill Struth is widely regarded as the greatest Rangers manager ever. He has been credited with ensuring the Ibrox club became a Scottish football giant. Struth led Rangers to a staggering era of success, winning 18 League titles, 10 Scottish Cups, and 2 League Cups in a 34-year tenure.
He became the first Scottish manager to win a domestic Treble when he won all three trophies in 1949. Such is Struth’s legacy, he had the Main Stand at Ibrox named after him in 2005, with then-chairman David Murray unveiling a bronze bust of the legendary boss.
Bill Struth is regarded as one of the pioneers in the management of the game. He brought the Rangers Football Club a level of unprecedented success that reverberated the world over.