Former Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard among favourites to replace van Bronckhorst at Rangers

Former Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard has emerged as one of the early favourites to become the new Rangers manager after Giovanni van Bronckhorst was sacked. The Bhoys relieved van Bronckhorst of his duties after a poor run of form in the Scottish Premiership.

Gerrard, exactly one month after he was sacked by Villa, has been linked with a move to take over the reins at the Ibrox Stadium. The former Liverpool man has already managed Rangers in the past, between 2018 and 2021. Despite it being his first managerial position, Gerrard led the Bhoys to their first Scottish Premiership title in 10 years.

At 10/1 via Sky Bet, Gerrard is currently the fifth favourite to become the next permanent Rangers head coach. Meanwhile, QPR boss Michael Beale comes in at 7/4 and former Gers defender Kevin Muscat is 3/1 to take over. Sean Dyche (4/1), Ralph Hassenhuttl (6/1) and Domenico Tedesco (12/1) are among others linked.

Gerrard only managed to win 32.5% of his games at Villa, with 13 wins in 40 matches. His previous spell at Rangers was far better, though, with a 64.5% win rate. Meanwhile, the recently-sacked van Bronckhorst was victorious in 61.8% of his fixtures in charge of the Gers.

The Glasgow side, who have earned 33 points out of an available 45 this campaign, are currently 2nd in the Scottish Championship - nine behind arch-rivals Celtic. The Hoops have only dropped points once all season, whereas Rangers have done so on five occasions.

Despite being eight points clear of Aberdeen in 3rd, Rangers’ start to the term has been deemed not good enough by those in the Ibrox boardroom. It is hoped a fresh face in the dugout can bring better results.