The four pillars analogy that was first coined by John Bennett was designed to give supporters an insight into where Rangers were and where they were heading as a club. When Philippe Clement used the phrase in his own manner, he outlined the vision for Rangers as a team under his guidance.

Right now, both men have questions to answer from a fan base that is veering between anger to apathy in the aftermath of another damaging Old Firm defeat. There is no single lightning rod at Ibrox, mainly because there is no single concern at the forefront of minds. Rangers have mounting issues on and off the field.

Here, the Rangers Review looks at what the problems are in the boardroom and the dressing room as Bennett and Clement find themselves in the firing line.

Sack the board?

The calls for change around the top table have steadily increased over the course of a summer that has seen reputations damaged and confidence levels hit. It is not quite as easy as telling the investor group to sell up and ship out, though. Right now, it is not a realistic situation either.

The Rangers Review revealed last week that suggestions of potential share purchases from American buyers were wide of the mark. Former chairman Dave King told us there was ‘no truth whatsoever’ in the rumours. While every investor will have a price at which they wish to do business, anyone coming into Rangers would need to deal with several of the bigger hitters to give themselves real control and influence.

The accusation levelled at Bennett and his board is that money has not been spent. In fact, it is how it has been spent that is the issue. As of June last year, the core of investors had put almost £80million into Rangers and Bennett’s contribution in particular should not be forgotten when supporters are firing off comments and criticisms.

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Some of those, of course, are fair and the level of investment does not provide an ever-lasting armour when the flak starts flying. Funding Rangers and running Rangers are different matters and should be appreciated and assessed on their own merits.

Bennett’s judgement in appointing James Bisgrove as chief executive officer has been questioned, while the huge financial backing that Michael Beale received did not need 20/20 hindsight to be considered folly given the limited checks and balances in place at that time.

Of the six directors on the RIFC plc board, only Graeme Park is based in Scotland. Since Bisgrove’s departure to Saudi Arabia, Rangers have been operating without a CEO. The imminent arrival of Jim Gillespie from St Mirren has not been met with widespread enthusiasm from the support and he has much to prove before even taking office.

A chief executive who runs the business efficiently and effectively would make a considerable difference to Rangers.  It may be somewhat cliché to speak about appointing a 'football man' but Rangers would benefit from more voices who have seen success at the highest level. While all major decisions rightly require board approval, the chairman and non-executive directors should not be involved in day-to-day matters. The football board – which includes the likes of Bennett, Clement and Nils Koppen – had its first test this summer. The jury is out.

Significant changes in the ownership of Rangers are unlikely at present. They need not be required, though. If the right people are in the right positions and are good at their jobs, Rangers will be successful in football and financial terms. To use another Bennett phrase, Rangers need best-in-class operators to ensure a strategy and vision permeates every layer of the business and football operation.

Questions for Clement

The Belgian cannot be held accountable for some of the wider issues in play at present but he does need to carry his share of the blame for how last season ended and this one has started. Credit is due for the way in which he galvanised the support and cajoled the team after Beale’s sacking as Rangers went from forlorn challengers to potential champions. His side crumbled in the final stages of the campaign, however, and the defeat to Celtic in the Scottish Cup final was another unfulfilling result in a pattern that then continued at Parkhead on Sunday.

Clement’s revelation during a wide-ranging interview on the pre-season trip to Holland that the transfer reality was different to the situation he expected when he was appointed raised eyebrows and questions. Since then, he has almost sought to soften expectations for this season by referencing the need to build for the long term and invest in younger players.

To an outsider, his call for patience after the derby defeat may not seem like an unreasonable request. But this is Glasgow and this is Rangers. And a support that did the hard yards for a decade are right to expect here and now success as well as future-proofing planning.

There was a realisation that Steven Gerrard would need time and would make mistakes when he was appointed in 2018. Six seasons on, Clement will not be afforded the same leeway given that Rangers were European finalists two years ago and have had Champions League cash and record player sales boost the bottom line. Clement is not culpable for how that has been squandered but he should be doing better given the resources he has been granted and his domestic record does not offer encouragement at present.

Clement is yet to win an Old Firm match (Image: PA)

Assessments of his style of play and approach are not overwhelmingly favourable. Almost 12 months on from his arrival in Glasgow, Rangers are nowhere near being the best technical, tactical, physical or mental team in the country and a title challenge this term is not on the cards.

His successes in Belgium were key to him landing the Ibrox job ahead of Kevin Muscat last October. They prove that Clement knows how to win but there have not been enough signs that he can replicate those glories in Glasgow.

Clement’s derby record is now a source of major concern. A Rangers manager that cannot beat Celtic over 90 minutes will never beat them over 38 matches. That situation only ends one way.

The new four-year contract Clement signed this summer was a show of faith from both the manager and the chairman. Rangers need to stop chopping and changing their boss every season but that doesn’t provide immunity when the fans decide the gaffer isn’t the right man.

A rebuild and a regression

The summer window was billed as the end of a cycle. The overhaul was significant in terms of players, personnel and personalities but it still wasn’t enough to placate the punters.

The age and wage profile of the squad had to be altered to address the multi-million-pound losses that were being recorded each year and to put value back into Rangers on the pitch and on the balance sheet. A new wage limit has been introduced for all signings and Clement and Koppen have shopped in different markets as Rangers seek to avoid making the same mistakes for another season.

Only James Tavernier remains from the side that started in Seville. The captain was the man that many fans wished to see leave this summer and even the departures of stalwarts of the squad such as Connor Goldson, Borna Barisic, John Lundstram and Ryan Jack haven’t been enough for some. This was, though, never going to be a one-window fix.

Moving on the higher earners was only part of the challenge for Rangers. In some regards, it was just about getting the wages off the bill as small fees were accepted for Goldson and Todd Cantwell. A handful of squad options were also sold on or loaned out but there is still fat to be trimmed from the group and the process will continue in January and next summer.

When the window closed on Friday night, it looked as though Rangers were short of strength and depth. Neraysho Kasanwirjo was not the calibre of defensive reinforcement that was expected, although Nedim Bajrami has the potential to be an effective recruit further forward. The right-back berth remains a major issue and Clement’s squad is light in midfield and on the flanks. The Cyriel Dessers conundrum will continue to be a source of debate over the campaign.

As Rangers operated on a one out, one basis in the latter phases of the window, time and events caught up with them. Connor Barron was the only new face to start at Tynecastle and Clement’s side were not ready for the start of the Premiership campaign. The following days showed that they were not ready for the Champions League either and the financial damage that was self-inflicted will continue to have lasting ramifications.

A staff spend of more than £60million was extraordinary and the return never matched the outlay. The squad has been mismanaged for years and the player-trading model has been almost non-existent. This mess is one of Rangers’ own making and key personnel in boardroom and executive roles cannot shirk their responsibilities in that regard.

The Ibrox issue

Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. This saga was entirely of Rangers’ own making and the fury that followed from the fans was fully justified. Bennett was not the man responsible for this summer shambles, but he had to carry the can and find a way out of the corner that he had been painted into.

The assurances that he continually sought and received proved worthless. In early June, the chairman was informed that Ibrox would be out of commission until after the start of the campaign due to delays in the Copland Stand project. The financial cost has yet to be detailed but the reputational damage is already clear. It will be some time before supporters forgive and many will never forget.

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Had Rangers chosen to delay the renovation works for another 12 months, few would have grumbled. This work is worthy and being done for the right reasons and that should be remembered. Rather than waiting until all the materials were on site before a seat was removed, Rangers pressed ahead with a multi-million-pound project that needed every piece to fall into place at the right time. The gamble didn’t pay off.

The communication with supporters left a lot to be desired. It was weeks before a comment was attributed to Bennett and he didn’t speak until the middle of July as a RangersTV interview was conducted in Berlin. The narrative had set in already.

By that stage, it was confirmed that Hampden would be the temporary home this term. Murrayfield had initially been the frontrunner to host Clement’s side but a deal was eventually struck with the Scottish FA. Given previous relations between the club and the Association, that in itself was a bitter pill for many fans to swallow. Rangers are thankfully on course to return to Ibrox in the coming weeks.

This is not the only infrastructure project that has not gone to plan in recent years. New Edmiston House was finally delivered considerably over budget and the Ibrox sports bar that was supposed to be operational in early 2024 has yet to open its doors. No date has been set for the ribbon cutting.

If Clement was putting a winning and entertaining team out every week, the spending on NEH or the delays to infrastructure projects would be largely overlooked by the majority. When there are other issues in play, everything that is said and done is analysed and criticised. Rangers continue to have the feel of a club that is in a state of chaos and transition on and off the park.