A gallery of contenders as former Newcastle United managers and players among front-runners for Rangers job

There are some familiar faces said to be in the running for the vacancy at Ibrox

A number of former Newcastle United players, coaches and managers are said to be among the front-runners to become the next manager of Scottish giants Rangers.

The Scottish Premier League club confirmed they had parted company with Giovanni van Bronckhorst on Monday morning, less than six months after he led them to the Europa League Final and they also lifted the Scottish Cup last season. The former Arsenal and Barcelona star was appointed in November 2021 following the departure of Steven Gerrard to Aston Villa, but his reign officially came to a close on Monday.

In a statement released on the club’s official website, club chairman Douglas Park said: “I want to thank Gio for the hard work he has put in over the last 12 months and, especially, the achievements of taking the club to the Europa League final and winning the Scottish Cup last season. Unfortunately, recent results have not met neither our nor Gio's expectations, and we have taken this difficult decision today. Everyone at Rangers wishes Gio every success in the future.”

Several managers have already been linked with the role and a number of faces familiar to Newcastle supporters are said to be in the running according to SkyBet.