Rangers' move is nothing new says Kenny Dalglish

Kenny Dalglish insists Rangers aren't doing anything new as they prepare to go down the director of football route in a bid to adopt a new management structure at Ibrox, writes Alan Pattullo.

Kenny Dalglish with coach Stephen Tortolano (in red) at a grassroots awards event in Stirling. Picture Ian Rutherford

Managing Director Stewart Robertson has confirmed the club are looking for someone to occupy the role with Ross Wilson, currently director of scouting at Southampton, reported to be the leading candidate.

“It’s as long ago as the Lisbon Lions won the European Cup that they had directors of football on the continent,” said Dalglish, who was director of football at Celtic during an ill-starred period when John Barnes was head coach. He also 
later worked under a director of football in his second spell in charge at Liverpool.

“It’s much-maligned here but I think it’s much-maligned because people don’t really understand what it is,” he added. “As long as the lines of demarcation are perfectly clear: you’re the director of football and I’m the manager, you will do the negotiations for players and transfers, then I don’t need to have anything to do with it.

“I worked with one when I went back to Liverpool with Damien Comolli and it was fantastic, the work he did,” he added. “He looked after all the finances with players, he looked after the scouting, organised all the scouting, and if I said ‘we need to have a look at him’, he would send someone out. If he saw somebody I would go and have a look. There was never anyone that came in the door that I didn’t want to come in.”

He stressed the troubles he and Barnes experienced at Celtic were not because of the management structure. “I never had a problem because I stuck to my job,” said Dalglish. “I knew what my job was and John knew what his job was. I was frustrated that it did not go better for everybody but it wasn’t because there was a clash in roles.”