Mark Warburton handed Rangers job without meeting Dave King

Mark Warburton landed the Rangers job without having met Dave King in person.

Football club owners customarily demand a face-to-face meeting with the Board’s preferred candidate before giving them the job, even if they have not been directly involved in the process.

Celtic’s main backer Dermot Desmond has gone down that road in the past as he feels it gives him a chance to get the measure of the man.

But in a clear indication of how the new regime in charge of Ibrox is to operate, in this case it was vice-chairman Paul Murray and director John Gilligan who saw the interview process through to the final recommendations.

Said Gilligan: “Paul and I were charged with the task of going and recruiting the manager and then reporting back to the Board and explaining why we thought the choice was right.

“On the Board there’s Dave King, Douglas Park who is a pretty famous businessman in Scotland John Bennett who our new manager will know because he is a city trader and myself, who is Mr Nobody.

“These are good quality people, with different skill sets and all Rangers fans, but that’s nothing to do with the decision.

“The decision is made in a business way delegate, report back, recommend, decision made.

“The Board then gave their opinion and Dave, contrary to what a lot of people might think, was quite comfortable with that.

“He delegated that job and that’s the way a Board should operate.

“People come with recommendations; you have a Board meeting and okay it.

“That’s exactly what happens, so it’s not Dave’s sitting in a room deciding: ‘We recommended and then the Board took the recommendation and decided yes’.”

Warburton himself insisted he was comfortable with the process and, indeed, with Dave King as his future boss.

“Although we hadn’t met, I heard the interview when he gained control of the club and the passion was very evident,” said the new manager.

“I thought he spoke very well of the aims and ambitions for the club, so I was very impressed by that speech. It was a long speech and the questions were quite demanding and the answers were good.

“You have to ask the right questions in these processes, and I am sure John Gilligan, Paul Murray and the Board asked the right questions about David Weir and me, and it goes the same for Mr Chairman.

“He was grilled when he took control and we listened to the answers he gave and I thought they were really positive about the football club.

“He is a very busy man but I am sure we will meet when the schedule allows and I look forward to the meetings and to working with him in future.”