Gerrard played at the highest level in Europe regular and won it as a player. He knows how to do it in the modern game. Walter is the greatest ever Rangers manager. But I’d still say Stevie G
Walter is not the greatest ever Rangers manager.
Bill Struth is.
Struth's record is incredible if you factor in the war years which may actually have been when his powers were at their zenith, his ability to refocus his energies for so many seasons with such monumental consistency is unrivalled anywhere in football around the world.
Scottish football was also very strong in this period when we produced world-class/international class/professional players in quantities enough to maintain a strong competitive league structure whilst exporting hundreds of top players south of the border to bolster and often dominate English football clubs, all of whom shared in the amazing bounty.
Further, Struth operated in a far more level playing field where Rangers were restricted to paying the same wages as clubs like Motherwell, Airdrie, Cyde etc, yet Struth relentlessly put together championship winning team after team after team.
Struth put the word dominate into the English dictionary
During the thirties when Arsenal themselves became the English dominant side of the era, with legendary managers Herbert Chapman and Willie Allison, Struth took their all-conquering team on season after season, and usually made them his bitches.
These games were taken seriously and were the Champions league tussles of their day.
Somehow these uncomfortable facts escape the notice of English journalists most of whom never bother to uncover the brilliance of Struth, perhaps they find it convenient to ignore him as he would otherwise trash their claims about Chapman's status.
Had there been European Cups to play for back in Struth's day, he would surely have filled the Ibrox trophy room with them such was his determination to be the best.
Struth's legacy wasn't trophies, instead, it was an all-powerful football club who at his time of leaving was easily the most successful in the world with a reputation second to none and a massive support that broke all manner of global records.
Walter was a great manger and the most telling compliment I could ever give him, was that Mr Struth would have acclaimed him as a son.