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Daily Record
10 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Record
Barry Ferguson reveals brutally honest Rangers sit down with Jack Butland and how 'sore' star responded
The Ibrox icon dropped the goalkeeper for Liam Kelly during his stint in the hot seat Barry Ferguson admits the most difficult 20 minutes of his stint in charge of Rangers was the heart-to-heart with Jack Butland when he took the keeper out of the firing line. And Ferguson has revealed how he was bursting with pride last Tuesday night when his one time Birmingham City team mate roared back to top form and kept the Ibroix side's Champions League alive. Ferguson returned to the stadium for the first time since his spell as interim boss as Butland pulled off a string of superb saves to stop Panathinaikos from storming into a potentially unrecoverable first half lead. The pair held a full and frank discussion back in April when, after a string of costly goalkeeping errors, Ferguson chose to promote Liam Kelly to his starting line up for a last 16 Europa League showdown with Athletic Bilbao. Speaking exclusively on tonight's edition of our agenda setting online show Hotline Live, Ferguson piles praise on his former No.1 for rediscovering the kind of form which almost led to an England call up at Euro 2024. And he admits the decision to leave the 32-year-old on the bench for most of last season's run-in was one of the toughest choices he had to make during his own three months in the hotseat. Ferguson said: 'Look, first and foremost, I was at the game last Tuesday and I thought Jack was immense with some of the saves he pulled off. 'But if I take you back to that, it was probably one of the hardest decisions I had to make. And it wasn't knee-jerk. "I took a couple of days, I sat on it, and I just felt I had to make the change because Jack was going through a difficult time, as every professional footballer does - you go through tough times in your career. 'I just thought it was the right time to take him out of the firing line for a number of weeks. Kells came in - Liam Kelly - another really good goalkeeper and he did great for me. 'But, if I go back to that time, I've got to think first and foremost of Jack Butland as a person - how is he going to react? I had to be really honest with him. 'And it was a tough 20 minute chat I had with him. I've got to be honest with you. 'He was sore. But one thing I will say about Jack is that he understood the reasons why I did it. 'Obviously I made the decision to bring Liam in and the one thing I'll say about Jack Butland is, if you remember back to that Bilbao game, Kells has made the penalty save and who was the first guy up congratulating him when that whistle went? 'And that tells you everything you need to know about Jack as a guy. 'I've known Jack a long time since he was a young player at Birmingham. So when I made the decision I had to think about how he's going to take it. I've got to be careful, I have to think of him. 'But he took it on the chin. He went and he trained hard. And see, day by day, as the weeks went on you could see the real Jack Butland, the top goalkeeper that he is, starting to return to how he was in the first season. Because he was immense when he came up in his first season. 'My intention was always to bring Jack back in at some stage and he came back in for the last two games of the season and his performances were at a high level again. Hotline Live: Tune in and have your say In case you haven't heard, we've launched a new Hotline Live show, airing at 6pm every day, with the exception of Fridays and Saturdays. Join our panel for a laugh, a moan and a look at all things Scottish football, as well as having your say on the biggest issues in the game. Subscribe to our YouTube channel so you never miss a single episode. Alternatively, you can watch on Facebook or Twitter. Need to get something off your chest? Have your say on what's happening in the world of Scottish football by contacting us at hotline@ You can find out more about the show here and also catch up on previous episodes with our full Hotline Live playlist on YouTube. 'I listened to his interview yesterday on Sky Sports. He went away, he worked hard and he had a lot of thinking to do over the summer. 'And it looks to me as if Jack Butland has come back prepared to show everybody what he is - and that's a top goalkeeper. 'On Tuesday night I was absolutely buzzing for him. I was. 'I don't like using the word 'dropped'. I left him out, that's what I'll say about it. 'But on Tuesday night some of the saves he made, that's the Jack Butland that I know and I was absolutely delighted for him.'
Daily Record
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Record
Andy Robertson fires brutal X-rated training rant at Liverpool kid as Scotland skipper shows off his cheeky side
The veteran defender was heard giving 16-year-old academy star Rio Ngumoha a dressing down during a training exercise Scotland captain Andy Robertson appeared to let his competitive streak get the better of him by slating a Liverpool team-mate in an X-rated training ground rant. Arne Slot 's side are gearing up for the defence of their Premier League title with a tour of Asia and will take on J1 League outfit Yokohama Marinos on Wednesday after losing 4-2 to AC Milan last weekend. And ahead of the game, Robertson - who is into the final 12 months of his contract at Anfield - could be heard giving 16-year-old starlet Rio Ngumoha a stern telling off during a training exercise. In footage shared on X by The Redmen TV, the teenager appeared to lose the ball, promoting Robertson, 31, to bellow: "Ah Rio, f****** complacency ya wee d***". The rant was clearly in jest, with the Tartan Army hero recently talking up his younger teammate. Ngumoha became the youngest ever player to start a game for Liverpool when he lined-up in an FA Cup clash against Accrington Stanley back in January and former Dundee United and Queen's Park full-back Robertson has predicted a big future in the game for the England youth international. Speaking about Ngumoha and fellow prospect Trey Nyoni in an interview with The Anfield Wrap, he said: "He's a good kid and he's got a fantastic head on his shoulders, especially when he's got people like Mo [Salah] who can help him so much as well. "We always try to help him and Trey. "They're so young but they're such good kids and they've got a hell of a future ahead of themselves. "You can just see them coming on every time and the more they train and play with us, the more they just get better and better. "Obviously that's the last two games I've played now with Rio in front of me and he just keeps on coming on. "He's got a hell of a future ahead of him but the here-and-now looks pretty good as well." Tune in to Hotline Live every Sunday to Thursday and have your say on the biggest issues in Scottish football and listen to Record Sport's newest podcast, Game On, every Friday for your sporting fix, all in bitesize chunks.
Daily Record
2 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Record
Jahmai Simpson-Pusey to Celtic could prove major coup after what Pep Guardiola said about Man City prodigy
Brendan Rodgers is said to be lining up a loan swoop for the highly-rated England youth international Celtic are said to be lining up a loan move for Manchester City defender Jahmai Simpson-Pusey. And the teenage star has already been tipped as the future of the Citizens' defence by Pep Guardiola. Highly-rated Simpson-Pusey, 19, burst onto the scene at the Etihad last season and immediately caught the eye. The England youth international made six first-team appearances - including two Champions League outings against Sporting Lisbon and Feyenoord. Simpson-Pusey was also crowned EPL 2 Player of the Year after captaining Man City's reserves to title glory, seeing off competition from Hoops new Bhoy Callum Osmand at Fulham. The youngster actually faced Celtic during City's pre-season tour of the USA in 2024, as Brendan Rodgers' side edged out 4-3 winners. He was then called upon by Guardiola throughout the campaign as the dethroned Premier League champions suffered an injury crisis. And the breakthrough talent seriously impressed his manager, with Guardiola hailing him as one for the future after his display in a 2-1 defeat at Brighton. All-conquering Guardiola said: 'The guy played really good, the young lad again, with this composure and duels and everything was good. It's not easy for him. 'Normally the young lads, they must come in with support from the team, with Rodri in front of them, right? With the best Kyle [Walker], and defenders, and now we support him. 'Now he's playing in a position that is difficult for him, but he performed unbelievably. We have a central defender to help us for the future, for the next years. I'm really pleased. Always there is good news when the situation goes bad, and this is one of them.' Guardiola revealed in December that he was tempted to throw in the rising star in the heat of a Manchester derby. He added: 'For example against (Manchester) United I thought to put Jahmai (Simpson-Pusey); he's played really good, but that pressure in that situation, it's a little bit…' Having offloaded Gustaf Lagerbielke and Maik Nawrocki, Celtic are in the market for more defensive cover. At least one winger, midfielder and main striker are also on Rodgers' wishlist as the champions kick off their title defence this weekend. Follow Record Sport on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for all of the up-to-the minute breaking news, video and audio on the SPFL, the Scotland national team and beyond. You can get all the news you need on our dedicated Rangers and Celtic pages, and sign up to our newsletters to make sure you never miss a beat throughout the season. We're also WhatsApp where we bring all the latest breaking news and transfer gossip directly to you phone. Join our Rangers community here and our Celtic community here. Tune in to Hotline Live every Sunday to Thursday and have your say on the biggest issues in Scottish football and listen to Record Sport's newest podcast, Game On, every Friday for your sporting fix, all in bitesize chunks.
Daily Record
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
I've a major Rangers takeaway after remarkable tale and Celtic face competition kryptonite
Former Ibrox chairman Paul Murray sat down with the Hotline Live team in a blockbuster exclusive after playing a key role in the US takeover Above all else there was one major take away from Paul Murray 's guest appearance on Hotline Live the other day. And the tens of thousands of you who have watched the special edition of our online show already may have reached the same conclusion. This is a man, let's not forget, who has spent most of the last 15 years running around in various states of emotional exhaustion given the extent of his concerns for Rangers Football Club. And, over that time, each and every one of them were proved to be more than valid. Yet there he was on Friday afternoon, in a Daily Record studio, telling his remarkable story apparently without a care in the world. And that's the take away right there. If Paul Murray has entered a zen like state then it stands to reason that things as we know them are about to change. For the first time since late 2010, when Craig Whyte slithered into view, Murray now feels able to sit back, put his feet up and enjoy the show. Having played a key role in facilitating Andrew Cavenagh and his consortium to successfully conclude their takeover, it is Murray's firmly held belief that Rangers are finally out of the red zone and that his own work here is done. All of which should come as great comfort to his fellow supporters who have also been forced to fret over the wellbeing of their club for so long. But this sudden change in the mood music around Ibrox should also send out a signal to the side from across town which has proven itself to be so adept at staying ahead of the curve and making hay while the sun has been shining. So successful have Celtic become throughout this period of unprecedented domestic dominance that it's actually difficult even just to imagine any genuine threat being offered up to their supremacy. Thirteen titles out of the last 14 is testament to the scale of this monopoly and there are some from the east end of Glasgow who will be rolling their eyes at the very suggestion that Cavenagh's Rangers ought to be treated with renewed levels of respect. They've heard it all so many times before that they've become utterly bored by it. Many of them no longer even regard Rangers as a serious, worthy rival. On the contrary, the perpetually down on their luck neighbours are there mostly for their amusement. As far as they are concerned, after witnessing a long succession of rinse and repeat summer rebuilds, Rangers are nothing more than the boy who cried wolf. And if that remains the prevailing attitude this time around, even though the Americans have moved in next door, then that would be perfectly understandable too. Celtic have more than earned the right to see themselves as the rulers of this particular roost given the trophies that have been stock piled in the boardroom over the last decade or so as well as the bloated state of the club's bank balance. With Brendan Rodgers at the helm and this elite level manager eyeing up a fifth successive league flag, the champions ought to be more than robust enough to cope with whatever Cavenagh might have in mind. But, even so, they too probably ought to take heed of Murray's sudden switch in mindset. Because, if he is right and if Rangers really are about to become a relevant, credible force again, then it could come as a timely shot in the arm for their club too. What Celtic cannot afford is to become complacent or lulled into a false sense of never ending security. And competition is complacency's kryptonite. So perhaps on this occasion it might be healthy for the club and its hierarchy to assume that the ground might be about to shift beneath their feet after all. And to do something meaningful about it. For example, when Russell Martin confirmed during a TV interview last week that he is indeed serious about pursuing a deal for Crystal Palace winger Jeserun Rak-Sakyi, Celtic may have felt the first minor tremor. If Rangers are even considering entering into a loan deal for a player and taking on an obligation to buy Ray-Sakyi outright for a fee of around £8m, then it does indeed point to a significant raising of the stakes. The sheer size of the figures involved certainly suggests that, under Cavenagh and his friends from the San Francisco 49ers, Rangers will no longer be scrambling around down the back of the couch looking for some loose change whenever the transfer window opens up for business. Whether ultimately they thrash out a deal for the 22-year-old or not, the very fact that Martin has publicly declared an interest feels like a statement of intention. It shows that Rangers see themselves as credible operators in the recruitment market and that alone ought to be enough to up the ante where Celtic's current dealings are concerned. It may also demand a rush of urgency. For his part, Rodgers has been giving off some mixed messages over the last couple of weeks in terms of the strategy which is being deployed in the hunt for some much needed squad reinforcements as well as a handful of first XI upgrades. Having initially described Hayato Inamura as a 'club investment' and a new arrival who would probably be sent out on loan, the Irishman appeared to be putting some distance between himself and that particular signing. Reading between the lines, Rodgers seemed to be suggesting that there might be two separate tiers to Celtic's approach to recruitment this summer. One drawn up by the men above and one charted out by the manager himself. He made a point of pivoting back from that position last week in Como when he made a point of stressing that he and the club remain perfectly aligned in their priorities. Which is all well and fine. But it does beg the rather obvious question, why say such a thing in the first place? And it doesn't address the burning issue of a clear and obvious deficit in quality at the manager's disposal since the sales of Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kuhn as well as the injury which will keep Jota on a treatment table for the rest of this year. Nor the fact that the top flight kicks off with a visit from St Mirren in six days' time and there is less than a month to go before a £50m play-off for a place in the league phase of this season's Champions League. Celtic will do significant business before the window closes. Rodgers will almost certainly add some very pricey improvements to his starting line up. But the clock is ticking and this summer, for the first time in a long while, they can't simply assume that the neighbours will be in no fit shape to keep up.
Daily Record
4 days ago
- Business
- Daily Record
Andrew Cavenagh pushed the button on Rangers takeover after undercover spying mission on the Copland Road
It was after this spying mission that Cavenagh opened the talks which would lead to his successful takeover in May of this year Andrew Cavenagh decided to push the button on his multi-million pound buy out of Rangers after going deep undercover to mingle with match day punters in the Copland Road stand. The health insurance tycoon made the secret trip to Glasgow on November 23 last year, battling through a snow storm to buy a ticket for a 1-1 draw with Dundee United. And it was after this spying mission that the American businessman opened the talks which would lead to his successful takeover in May of this year, along with his backers from the San Francisco 49ers The story of Cavenagh 's first ever trip to Ibrox has been revealed by Paul Murray in part of an in depth exclusive interview with our groundbreaking Hotline Live show, which is available to view online. And Murray, who helped Cavenagh and his consortium pull the deal together from the inside, has told how he knew the Americans were destined to take control from the moment the main man turned down a VIP seat in the directors' box to sit among the fans instead. Murray revealed: 'I met Andrew for the first time on a Zoom call in October last year, so nine months ago. We had a bit of a chat - nice guy - and he was then coming to London a week later. 'So I flew down to London and had lunch with him in central London. We had a really good chat. 'He didn't actually mention the 49ers at that time but he was actually with a guy from Leeds so I kind of figured out that there was something else maybe going on. 'We had a really good chat and my first impressions were, 'Really nice guy, very easy to talk to,'. 'As we've been discussing, over the last 20 years I've met a lot of people who want to invest in Rangers and who come forward - I think we all know some of the people we've just been mentioning! 'Andrew was different. You just got a sense immediately this guy is, first of all, he's a very successful businessman in his own right. A very serious guy but also a nice guy and also engaged. 'I talked him through the history of the club, the last 15 years and some of the things that had happened. You could tell he was really engaged. He obviously knew a lot of the things we were talking about. 'As it happened, because the guy was there from Leeds, I did take the opportunity of mentioning the Battle of Britain from 30 years ago which they were quite amused by. 'I said, 'That shows you where Rangers were 30 years ago. Before the English Premier League came into existence, we were, if not the biggest club in Britain, certainly one of the biggest clubs in Britain,'. So they were actually quite interested in that. 'I think the two things which really struck me about Andrew that day were, first of all he was really engaged and obviously really interested in what I was saying but also we were playing a game against Hearts at Ibrox a couple of days later on the Sunday. 'He actually said to me, 'I think I'll just fly up to Ibrox and go to the game,'. 'I asked if he wanted me to try to speak with someone and he said, 'No, I'll just get a ticket and I'll just go,'. 'As it turned out, for various reasons he wasn't able to go as he had some family stuff on but he then contacted me about a week later and said he wanted to go to the Dundee United game, which was in the middle of November. 'Again, I asked if he wanted me to help and he said, 'No, I'll just go and get a ticket - a normal ticket for any area of the ground,'. I think he actually went into the Copland Stand. 'But I thought that was quite interesting. A guy with that wealth and he just thought, 'I'm going to buy a ticket,'. 'He flew up to Glasgow, bought a ticket on his own. He went with a couple of other guys and you might remember it was a really bizarre game because it was meant to be a three o'clock kick-off on the Saturday and it was really bad weather. 'It was the middle of November but there were snow drifts and crazy weather to the point that Dundee United couldn't get down the A9. 'He actually contacted me to say, 'When does the game start?'. 'I said, 'I've just looked and apparently it's been delayed until four o'clock!'. 'So it was a really weird day and Andrew was basically walking about the stadium, looking at the stands and nobody knew who this guy was. 'I thought it was actually really interesting that a guy like that would take the time - because normally these guys want to go to the directors box as VIPs - but this guy was prepared to put on his work clothes if you like and just go and look at it. 'The other thing that happened that day was there were quite a lot of fan protests as well as having the snow drifts to contend with. But it obviously didn't put him off.' Now, a decade after helping Dave King take control of Ibrox in a boardroom purge, Murray believes his club has been passed into the best possible hands. He said: 'There are no guarantees. But I'm hugely excited. 'I spent a good bit of time with Andrew in the early days - I don't know Paraag just as well but we did have a couple of meetings - and I think these guys are going to be great for the club. 'I think, in a funny kind of way, the fact that they are not Rangers fans is a good thing because we've had Rangers fans on the board for a long time and it is difficult. 'It's hard to convey when you are a fan but you are also on the board as a custodian, you feel the weight of expectation on your shoulders. 'In fact, my very last game on the board of directors was just before Steven Gerrard came, when we lost 5-0 at Celtic Park and Celtic won the league. 'I remember leaving that day and I was actually finished. I just had to resign because I was emotionally spent. You sit there as a fan and as a director and it's hard to take. 'These guys are clearly going to be invested in the club from an emotional point of view but they are a bit more detached. And that gives them more objectivity which is a good thing. 'I don't know Paraag as well as Andrew but I think they are quite a complimentary duo and it's maybe this east coast west coast thing. Andrew is obviously from Philadelphia and I think Paraag is from California. 'So they have slightly different styles and backgrounds but I think they are quite complementary.'
