It has been an interesting time of late for football coach Michael Beale. Having spent time with Chelsea, Liverpool and Sao Paulo as he learnt the ropes, he tasted great success alongside former Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard during their spell at Rangers, experienced the Premier League with a shortish spell at Aston Villa, and then took on the managerial role in his own right by making the switch out to Championship side Queens Park Rangers.
Long lauded as the tactical brains behind Gerrard’s Rangers operation that ended rivals Celtic’s run for ten straight Scottish Premiership titles in a row, Beale has had a good start to life at Queens Park Rangers. 21 games into the second tier campaign, Beale has overseen nine wins, four draws and eight defeats. Their goal difference as we sit through the domestic pause for the first ever winter World Cup out in Qatar is slightly in the positive, and with the league on its break, Queens Park Rangers sit in seventh place – tied with Millwall on 31 points as they battle to get into the Championship Play Off spots.
However, Queens Park Rangers fans could again see their season slightly derailed as given Beale’s success as a manager in his own right so far, allied to his previous ties at Rangers, following their decision recently to part company with Giovanni van Bronckhorst after an incredibly poor start by their standards that saw them drop out of the Champions League with six straight defeats and a domestic league campaign that sees them already trail Celtic by nine clear points, it looks like they want Beale to return to Ibrox and you would get good odds on betting sites of that happening.
Whilst most eyes are on the ongoing action at the World Cup and there are still plenty of free bet offers available, it was reported on Saturday evening that Rangers had now held talks with Beale about their managerial vacancy after they secured permission from the Loftus Road outfit to begin initial negotiations. Having spent three years at Ibrox his stock will still be high with their board and fans given the reputation he held, but he is not the only candidate they are looking at, although it is widely believed he is their number one pick and talks are apparently at an advanced stage.
With the break for the World Cup still in full force, the ideal choice for Rangers is to possibly make an appointment by the end of next week at the latest so their new gaffer has greater time to work with the squad in the hopes of having a more immediate impact for when the domestic season returns on December 15 with their evening tie against Hibernian on home soil.
Beale’s overall record is not bad for a first time manager but there will be those out there who have concerns about the 42 year old despite his previous association at the club, as Queens Park Rangers are on a run of four defeats from their last five games, but if Rangers do follow through with the appointment they will be hoping that is simply a blip if he does ultimately return to the Scottish game.
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