It's a big job facing Michael Beale at Rangers but judging by his first couple of days in charge, he's not going to shy away from it.
As Record Sport reported last night, the new man in charge has already begun shaping his squad with Zak Lovelace among three youngsters called up to the first-team to make their mark. But that's only likely to be the tip of the iceberg as he whips things into shape to try to salvage the remainder of the Scottish Premiership season.
Few clubs spend fortunes in January, with the market more limited. But Beale is certain to want to tweak his squad in the winter window so there will likely be wiggle room for signings. Even more so if contract rebels such as Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent are moved on to make room. There's no doubt the new boss will already have a new transfer or two in mind as he looks to win the fans over fast.
Much was made of his intensive knowledge of the existing squad but connections across football would have been one of the primary reasons he was handed the reins. Having worked closely with Steven Gerrard at Liverpool and learned Portuguese to work with legendary Brazilian keeper Rogerio Ceni 5,000 miles away, he's a well travelled coach with a formed idea of what makes a player in any part of the world. Here, Record Sport takes a look at three of the markets he could dip into in order to get things motoring.
South America
It's not a market Scottish clubs dip into very often and it's no real wonder why. If you're used to the sun and sand in Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires, away games in Paisley and Perth are hardly going to get the blood flowing.
But it's something that will start to change soon as Scottish football broadens its horizons. North America is becoming a more frequently used market with Aberdeen, Dundee United and Hibs all using it to their advantage recently, while plenty of Aussies are starting to make Scottish football their home – just look at the amount of SPFL interest in the Socceroos squad for Qatar.
It only makes sense our game be dipping more into South America sooner rather than later – look at Alexandro Bernabei at Celtic – and Beale may be the man to open those floodgates. He spent six months there working as Rogerio Ceni's assistant at Sao Paulo in 2017 and will still have contacts and connections at one of the biggest teams in Brazilian football. Work permits can be a problem when signing players from South America, but the season finished earlier this month and doesn't start up again until April – meaning it could be the perfect time to pounce on some Samba stars.
England
Having worked with Chelsea and Liverpool and managed QPR, there will be few in the Scottish game who have a better knowledge of the comings and goings down south than Beale. And with his work mostly coming within the youth ranks, the chances of another Calvin Bassey-style pinch are promising.
It was a market Steven Gerrard leaned on heavily and while there were a few duds and one or two the jury is still out on, the likes of Joe Aribo and Connor Goldson proved inspired signings. It will be the quickest and most convenient way to land a budget January signing or two. Liverpool, in particular, know Beale's methods well and there may be one or two Anfield youngsters he is already looking at for loan deals.
Netherlands
The Dutch era at Ibrox looks to have come and gone but it may not quite be so. While Gio's countrymen on his coaching team followed him out the door, the knowledge that came with scouring the Dutch market will still be there and Beale would do well to lean on it.
They've targeted the likes of Joey Veerman and Xavi Simons in the past and while deals didn't come off, those two have gone on to star for PSV - proving they were looking in the right places. And Beale's short-lived playing career, after all, did take him to the Netherlands as he spent some time with Twente prior to giving it up and moving into youth coaching with Chelsea. It's one pool of players he'll be well aware of anyway and it would be no surprise to see them return to the Eredivisie to pick up an under-the-radar signing or two.
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