Lee McCulloch: McInnes is the right man for Rangers

Former Rangers captain Lee McCulloch believes the timing is right for Derek McInnes to leave Aberdeen and return to Ibrox.

Lee McCulloch
Published 8th Nov 2017

McInnes is believed to be the Rangers board's first choice to succeed Pedro Caixinha but no approach has yet been made.

Rangers would need to agree a major compensation fee for the Dons boss but McCulloch feels McInnes will soon be switching clubs after four-and-a-half years at Pittodrie.

Speaking at a William Hill event, McCulloch said: "For me, I think Derek McInnes is the stand-out. He has played with the club, he knows the demands of the club, his recruitment for Aberdeen has been fantastic. From where he took over Aberdeen to where they are now, the transformation has been incredible.

"How much further could you take Aberdeen? He's got them to cup finals, taken them to Europe, they finished second last year.

"I think it's probably the right time for Derek to leave, although Derek probably couldn't say this. I think Derek's the perfect fit for the board so it should only be a matter of time."

Rangers have won two games under caretaker boss Graeme Murty since Caixinha was sacked just seven months after replacing Mark Warburton.

And defender Danny Wilson claims the players need to give the new boss more help.

Wilson, who has made his first two starts of the season under Murty, said: "I think us players need to take more responsibility. I heard Murty talk about us taking more ownership and I think he's spot-on with that.

"We as players need to look and say that's another manager gone. That's two this year and we need to step up and start performing.