"A gross level of mismanagement" was Andy Halliday's verdict on Rangers' summer. The former midfielder backed Derek McInnes, but said the real problem is a squad that has been badly built, with the club already winless in four games and only one win in their last five competitive matches.

Halliday's case against the recruitment

Halliday did not hide where he thinks the damage has been done. "If you've signed 27 players in the space of 12 months, then you've got so many decisions wrong," he said to Sky Sports. He added that there is "a real lack of pace, a real lack of creativity, no one that can dictate the tempo of a game."

That criticism is hard to brush off when Rangers have brought in nine new signings this summer and still look short of control in midfield. Halliday's point is not that McInnes is the issue, it is that McInnes is trying to make sense of a squad that has been churned too often.

The European numbers sit awkwardly alongside that argument too. Rangers are 32nd in the 2025-26 Europa League standings with four points and a -9 goal difference, which gives their sluggish start a sharper edge.

Driouech's collapse adds to the mess

The other side of the story is Couhaib Driouech, whose move to Rangers fell apart after the clubs had reached an agreement. Peter Bosz said at PSV Eindhoven that the deal was "settled" before he heard it had collapsed, and he described the news as a surprise.

Driouech's output last season explains why Rangers were interested, with 9 goals and 8 assists in 40 appearances. He also came off the bench 24 times in the Eredivisie, so the appeal was always about adding a lively wide option rather than signing a guaranteed starter.

Bosz then made it clear that Driouech is still part of PSV Eindhoven's plans, saying he is again one of his players and needs to get back to helping them win matches. That leaves Rangers back where they started, still looking for answers after a summer that has already drawn heavy criticism.

The basic point from Halliday feels fair enough. McInnes can only work with what he has, and right now Rangers do not look like a side that was given the right tools.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →