Some Rangers conversations take off at a hundred miles an hour, and this is one of them. A player makes a mess of things off the park, folk immediately jump to “terminate him” or “banish him”, and suddenly it’s all-or-nothing. But the uncomfortable bit is the club can’t always do what fans want on the timeline we want it.

Clubs can’t just “sack him” on demand

We’re not talking about what feels right in the moment, we’re talking about what a business can legally do. If a player claims there’s an alcohol issue, for example, the process isn’t simply to punt him out the door. There’s a duty of care element and, in practice, clubs tend to be expected to offer support, counselling, and a route to getting help before they go anywhere near the nuclear option.

That’s not the same as “no consequences”. It’s just reality. Contracts, employment rules, and the fact that Rangers are a high-profile employer means everything gets scrutinised. The club needs to protect its own position as much as it needs to protect standards.

The timeline is the killer

Fans often underestimate how slow these things can move. If it ends up in court and the player contests it, you can be looking at a long wait before anything is fully resolved. Even if he pleads guilty at the first opportunity, there can still be reports, assessments, and then a separate sentencing date. Weeks become months quickly.

So while supporters debate what Rangers “should” do, the club might be stuck operating in a grey area for a good chunk of a season. That’s why some of the chat feels way overboard. There’s a lot of certainty in the stands, but not much of it matches how the real world works.

Football-wise, Rangers still have a job to do

From a purely Rangers point of view, the priority on the pitch doesn’t disappear. If he’s available and the club can select him, then the simplest approach is often the most practical one: he plays as normal, he accepts whatever punishment is coming, and the team tries to get the results needed.

It’s not about pretending nothing happened. It’s about not letting one situation swallow the whole dressing room. The manager needs focus, the squad needs calm, and the support needs to keep its eye on what we can actually influence. Win games. Keep standards. Deal with the rest properly, not noisily.

And if the club decides that, once everything is settled, it’s time to move him on in the summer, plenty of fans would accept that as the cleanest line under it. Just don’t expect instant solutions in a world that doesn’t offer them.

Written by Stevie_G_new: 7 January 2026

Tags: transfers