I hate to say I told you so, but, in light of the smugness of some Rangers fans this week, and in the absence of laughter emojis on my keyboard, I’ll just say, I told you so.
The Great Rangers Takeover Climbdown Begins
Yes, one by one the same media sources who rushed to tell us just weeks ago that Rangers were about to get a massive infusion of cash from the group that owns the San Francisco 49ers, are now in full damage control mode.
Daily Record Stands Alone
Of course, having gone all-in on this story, and even taken a self-awarded victory lap to remind us it was their “big exclusive”, The Daily Record once again doubled down today.
That old chestnut the “25 million pound” transfer war-chest was trotted out once again. Luckily common sense has prevailed elsewhere as other, normally “on-message” media sources discussing Rangers poured cold water on the idea.
Only Themselves to Blame
In a hilarious twist, it seems that yesterday’s better than usual but woefully inadequate statement out of Ibrox regarding racism and intolerance wasn’t the sudden bout of conscience the Rangers board wanted us to believe it was.
In actual fact, it was what American Football fans would call a final “Hail Mary” play. I don’t expect to hear many inside Ibrox use that particular phrase though.
“But, But I Can Change!”
The Rangers board wanted to be seen to act on unacceptable behavior, to convince their potential benefactors that they are indeed trying to mend their ways. The American investors, it seems, are not convinced.
Rangers are now acting like any jilted lover who promises “I can change!”
The money men in the US know, that’s not going to happen.
Even the Record Joins in The Blame Game
In a quite brazen attempt to cover their own backsides the Daily Record published another story, little more than an hour after their “25 million war-chest” puff piece.
This one carried a far graver message though. It warned that the "monumental" Rangers takeover was in jeopardy, and that Rangers can thank The Union Bears for putting it there.
A Stolen Source, But a Valid One
As usual, the source the Record quoted in their article wasn’t something they’d bothered to research on their own. It was all lifted straight from the YouTube Channel PLZ Soccer.
PLZ is one of the few Scottish football outlets that, for all its flaws, isn’t dominated by figures with an obvious leaning towards Rangers.
I’ve Said Before, Fascism is Bad For Business
PLZ’s pundits pointed out that the head of the potential American investors, Andrew Cavenagh, a vulture capitalist that the Record affectionately describes a “health tycoon”, was at last Thursday’s game. He saw both the racist banner from the Union Bears, and their antics with throwing missiles at the opposing goalkeeper.
Suffice to say, if Mr Cavenagh is half as smart as the Daily Record want us to think he is, he’ll run. He’ll run fast and he’ll run far, taking his millions with him.
Rangers are a toxic brand, and between last Thursday and last Sunday’s Neanderthalic behavior, we’ve been reminded exactly why they are not remotely investible.
Now the Real Fun Begins
With club football off the agenda for at least a few more days, expect more to emerge on this story.
I’m not going to lie, watching those hacks at the Record backpedal faster than a Ferrari stuck in reverse brings quite the smile to my face.
This could all have been avoided, if they had just been honest with the Rangers support and the rest of their readership, such as it remains, from the start.
But honesty and sensationalism don’t work well together. Expect more hyperbolic nonsense to spew forth from Jackson and co over the next few days. And then sit back and watch them squirm as they desperately true to blame others for their own dishonesty.
Don’t Believe the Hype
Remember, I’m not some insider with “big exclusives”. I’m simply a trained journalist with a computer, and semi-decent writing skills. And I could see from day one that this whole takeover was a smokescreen.
Don’t let any of these professionals tell you they were deceived when this all falls through. The signs were always there, for those willing to remove the blue tinted specs for a few seconds.
Could some vulture like Cavenagh make a quick buck by buying up a distressed asset like Rangers and flipping it?
Maybe. But after this week, he’s probably realized, as indeed most Celtic fans have, that Rangers and their moronic fanbase, are simply not worth the trouble.