McCoist keen for return to management

Ally McCoist says he is ready to return to management and insists his Rangers record should not be held against him.

The 53-year-old has been out of coaching since being sacked by Rangers in December 2014.

And McCoist is now desperate to get back to work after a stint working as pundit for BT Sport.

There have been opportunities already, with McCoist revealing he has twice come close to landing jobs in the Sky Bet Championship.

Speaking at the Ladbrokes Euro 2016 warm-up day at Knockhill, he told Press Association Sport: "I had a couple of interviews with a couple of Championship clubs down south which went well.

"I didn't get the job unfortunately but that's fine. I got down to the last two in both instances, so I was pleased to get back into it.

"I've missed the job, of course I have.

"I've been involved in football all my life. I was professional for 22 years and then involved with Walter Smith and Tommy Burns at Scotland before returning to Rangers with Walter. It's my life.

"I've enjoyed the bit of time off I've had and the chance to do things I've not been able to do, like my telly work.

"But football is my game and I'm looking to get back managing again.''

McCoist was in charge at Gers when the club suffered financial collapse in 2012.

The club's all-time top scorer remained at Ibrox to successfully lead the side to two promotions as they started their journey back towards the top, but his reign was haunted by off-field turmoil.

In the end, a combination of some bleak performances and a breakdown in relations with the then controlling regime saw him relieved of his first-team duties as he was placed on gardening leave.

But McCoist believes prospective employers would be wrong to judge his Rangers CV without taking into consideration the working conditions at Ibrox.

"Anybody with any common sense would look at it and say perhaps the hand of cards I was dealt was pretty unfortunate,'' he said.

"You could go on to say a million things about my time as Rangers boss.

"But I don't think there's any doubt that I was probably unique in being the only Rangers manager who had to work in those circumstances.

"That's life. It was the dream job at the wrong time.''

The only time the former Scotland striker has been seen back at Ibrox since his sacking was a brief appearance at the extraordinary general meeting called in March last year which ousted the unpopular board who had ruled during McCoist's stint.

That shareholder vote allowed Dave King to grab power but it was several months before the new chairman could strike a deal with McCoist to finally terminate his lucrative Gers contract.

And the former boss was nowhere to be seen when Mark Warburton's new-look Rangers celebrated the club's promotion to the Premiership last month, despite calls from some supporters for McCoist to be given an invite.

However, the boyhood Gers supporter insists his ties with the club have not been cut.

He said: "I've been a Rangers supporter for 50 years and that will never change.

"I still talk with (honorary life president and former captain) John Greig and I've still got season tickets for Ibrox so there is absolutely no problem at all with myself and the club. I absolutely make that statement and reiterate it.

"I played there for 15 years, was assistant manager and then manager but the circumstances at the end clearly weren't ideal.

"But there is no doubt I'll be back.''