Award-winning ex Aston Villa star gets huge promotion to temporarily replace Michael Beale at Rangers

Former Aston Villa star Steven Davis has stepped up to the plate as interim manager at Glasgow giants Rangers following the dismissal of Michael Beale.

A Scottish Premiership defeat to Aberdeen proved the final nail in the former QPR boss' coffin with the Gers languishing seven points behind Celtic after an underwhelming stat to the season.

The club said that results had "fallen short of what everyone connected to Rangers would expect" as they confirmed that Beale had been sacked.

The statement added: "Therefore, the decision was reached today to terminate the contract of the manager, as well as the contracts of coaches Neil Banfield, Damian Matthew, Harry Watling and Jack Ade.

"The Rangers board would like to put on record their thanks to Michael and his staff for their efforts since joining the club last November."

Former Rangers man Kevin Muscat is favourite to replace Beale permanently with familiar Premier League faces Jesse Marsh, Graham Potter and Ralph Hasenhuttl also touted as options.

In the meantime, it's Davis who will oversee proceedings at Ibrox. The ex Villain will be assisted by Alex Rae and coaches Steven Smith, Brian Gilmour and Colin Stewart.

The opportunity is Davis' first in a managerial capacity after the midfielder suffered a cruciate ligament rupture while playing for the side since last December. He hasn't made an appearance as a player since.

Davis joined Rangers from Southampton in 2019, 12 years after leaving Aston Villa, where he broke through from the youth academy. The 38-year-old made 102 appearances for Villa and won Aston Villa Players' Player of the Year, Aston Villa Young Player of the Year and Aston Villa Supporters' Player of the Year in 2006 after an impressive year.

Davis received the backing of departing Beale as he took temporary charge over the weekend. The departing Rangers boss shared a short statement on social media following his sacking and said: "Thank you to Rangers FC and to everyone behind the scenes at the training ground and Ibrox, to the board, staff, fans and all the players. I will always follow and support the club from afar and wish you every success.

"Now is the time for everyone to unite fully behind Steven Davis and the team for the coming games. There is still so much to play for this season and I have a strong belief in this group of players. Thank you and good luck. MB."