BILLY DODDS has warned Steven Gerrard that he can’t expect to retain his position as Rangers manager unless he lands a trophy in the near future.
The Ibrox boss failed to pick up silverware in his first season in Glasgow and despite football being in shutdown mode due to the coronavirus, another trophyless campaign looks a certainty.
Gerrard is desperate to make a success of his side, but after crashing out of the Scottish Cup to Hearts along with shock league defeats to Kilmarnock and Hamilton after the winter break, he appeared to be pondering over his future.
Questions have been asked about his suitability to take the Ibrox side forward and despite knowing the scale of the task in hand, former Rangers striker Dodds believes time is running out for the Liverpool legend.
Speaking to Herald and Times Sport, he said: “Their season is practically over barring an absolute miracle. Where does that leave Steven Gerrard?
“How long do you give a manager who has not won a trophy at a club like that? Now I know it is difficult to catch Celtic because they are away out in front financially and they have good foundations.
“But if you don’t win games and trophies at a club like Rangers then you can’t expect to go on as the manager long term.
“For me there is no doubt that he has closed the gap, I know it maybe hasn’t felt like that with the bad run that they’ve had, but there’s no doubt he is getting Rangers closer to Celtic. But I don’t know if that is close enough, he has to get them really close really soon.
“When you’re a manager it is a results based business and I know that quote gets thrown out all the time but it is true. He’s played under pressure as a player, which doesn’t always transfer to being a manager, but he now knows what it is like.
“He’s gone trophyless in the first season, now it looks like the same in the second. I think Steven Gerrard and anyone in football for that matter knows if it goes on for a third season then serious questions will be asked.”
Rangers are currently 13 points behind Celtic in the Scottish Premiership and with the future of the season in doubt it remains to be seen whether the Hoops will be crowned champions.
If the proposal does go ahead it would see Neil Lennon's team finish top of the pile in Scotland’s top-flight for the ninth season in a row. Dodds admits questions will have to be asked by his old club to determine if Gerrard is the right man to stop the Parkhead side reaching the dreaded ten.
He added: “I don’t think Rangers have any chance of winning the league if the season is continued, because that would mean Celtic would have to slip up.
“I think the Europa League is beyond them as well, Leverkusen were a step up in class and it is too much of an ask for Rangers.
“Rangers, after what has gone on over the past few years are just desperate for a trophy. That is what the fans are crying out for just now.
“The fans expect a trophy in the cabinet or you are under the pump. You can’t just leave it for the sake of leaving it and saying he is in the job long term, when he’s not really producing anything.
“Managers know when the time is right. As much as they all try and spin it out saying ‘I thought I deserved this and that’, they will know deep down.
“I don’t think Rangers are in a great frame of mind. Now this coronavirus break might help, but you look at the last two winter breaks and they’ve worked against them.”
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