By the time football stopped for the World Cup break Giovanni van Bronckhorst had run out of road with the majority, if not all, of the Rangers support.

He entered the months of October and November in need of performances alongside results and ended with neither. The 1-1 draw against St Mirren just over a week ago felt like a falling apart and now nine points adrift of Celtic after a seemingly favourable run of fixtures, the mood could not have been lower.

There was little belief that the Dutchman could claw back the league title and even less evidence to justify that viewpoint.

Simply put, there was nothing for van Bronckhorst to hold onto. Results were bad and performances worse. Players were not improving as everything seemed to trend in the wrong direction. Two points from nine against St Johnstone, St Mirren and Livingston was bad, but the fact that Rangers did not deserve to win any of the three matches was worse.

Underlying numbers were not overly favourable and solutions to deep defences seemed absent. Brian Laudrup criticised van Bronckhorst for his body language and claimed it lacked belief but it was the visible frustration that really stood out. A man normally so composed, level in victory and defeat, perpetually threw his arms aloft in frustration. Discontent with the product he was responsible for producing.

That is why the departure felt inevitable during the World Cup break. The Rangers board cited the fact that “results and performances had not met expectations” in their statement confirming the decision but they've also had to consider the future in their decision. 

Supporters could not see how this style of football would lead to a dominating, successful domestic season; therefore, failure felt inevitable. The intervening time felt wasted while the gap at the top grew wider with trust in the process eroded. 

Rangers Review:

Complaints about the style of football on show at Ibrox have bubbled away under the surface since the start of the year. Recent results validated concerns that while Rangers had been winning most of the season domestically, they haven't been convincing.

The philosophy van Bronckhorst introduced and implemented is not aggressive and ruthless enough to rack up results, or solid and dependable enough to win the games that win league titles.

Europe, which has previously offered this group respite from domestic troubles, only made matters worse. Ever since a 4-0 Old Firm defeat was followed by a 4-0 Champions League defeat at the hands of Ajax and van Bronckhorst suggested that his side could not compete at that level, they've looked to lack belief. 

And yet, amongst all this is the reality that had penalty kicks had gone the other way, this team would have been immortal alongside van Bronckhorst. He gave Ibrox some of its best-ever nights and did end the long wait for a Scottish Cup. However, managers can’t survive on sentimentality and memories for long. That was the past and the future is now.

Yes, injuries have been critically bad, the squad does not feel as fresh as it ought to after the summer and so many players have not hit heights they are capable of scaling. But the manager is the manager, responsible for highs and accountable for lows. The situation was so fragile that even if shoots of recovery had shown, any wobble would’ve been magnified.

He had lost the trust of the support and wasn't viewed as the man to rebuild it. That's why his departure was inevitable. 

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