Barry Ferguson blows second Rangers interview to leave San Francisco 49ers with easy manager job decision

There is a well-known saying in football about never going back to an old club, however, Barry Ferguson was never going to turn down his dream job at Rangers.

It was made clear that the Hall of Fame legend was “only” an interim Rangers manager, not that the man himself diluted the importance of the role.

The former Ibrox hero has spoken about it being his Rangers squad and his players, despite only just inheriting what is a rag-tag group of journeymen and promising youngsters who might have potential but haven’t grasped the concept of consistency.

With little to play for domestically, Ferguson’s remit was to restore pride, ruin Celtic’s procession to the title and, maybe, extend the Europa League run.

A couple of boxes have been ticked even if there is now little doubt about whether or not Barry Ferguson has what it takes to get the Rangers job on a permanent basis.

Barry Ferguson has blown another chance to be Rangers boss

Ferguson’s CV as a manager wasn’t what saw Patrick Stewart reach out and ask him to cover until the season.

It was his reputation as a player and as a figurehead that Rangers fans could get behind and, at least, understand that decisions would be based with the club’s best interests at heart.

Stewart wants to appoint a sporting director before a new manager with San Francisco 49ers technical director Gretar Steinsson said to be helping too.

Despite the high-profile nature of the job, there hasn’t been much in terms of speculation or names linked with the Ibrox hotseat.

One name that won’t be on the list is Ferguson.

Or he shouldn’t be, at least.

He is saying all the right things; about standards, about performances that aren’t good enough, about what he wants to see.