Michael Beale can blame it all on Franklin D Roosevelt. It was the former American president, after all, who first identified the importance of the ‘first 100 days’ following his inauguration in 1933.
He even coined the phrase. Granted, that was back in the grips of the Great Depression at a time when his country was being ravaged by financial uncertainty and ambitions were falling through the floor. But you get the original point.
Today marks Beale ’s ‘first 100 days’ in the Rangers dugout since his own inauguration as Gio van Bronckhorst’s successor. And – more than a little bit unfairly – it does feel as if he is battling against a similar backdrop of unrest and general dissatisfaction amongst his own constituents. Roosevelt immediately convened a three-month long emergency session of Congress, railroading through 15 major bills and passing 77 new laws. Beale has bought Todd Cantwell and Nicolas Raskin – while leaving both his new recruits on the bench when he lost the first cup final of the season against Celtic.
But the new man can also point to a significant uptick in his side’s results as proof he used his early days in charge to paint a picture of a rosier future for the Ibrox club.
That a core section of fans remain to be convinced is more to do with the general state of malaise, which had set in long before Beale was brought back to the helm to carry out running repairs on a team that had already entered into a steep decline and a state of general disarray.
Having been credited as being the brains behind Steven Gerrard’s title win in 2021, Beale quickly became an obvious and perhaps even a convenient choice for an increasingly embattled board, which tends not to specialise in thinking outside of the box. Even in the best of times.
But, while Beale has done enough already to suggest that this may prove to be one of their better decisions, the feeling of gloom engulfing this club stubbornly refuses to lift. Of course he must carry the can for some of this dissatisfaction, given he did not escape from Hampden free of blame for a then loss of the Viaplay Cup.
Having gone out of his way to stress the importance of recruiting only players who will make his starting XI stronger during the January transfer window, Beale’s decision to leave his only two new recruits sitting on the sidelines for more than an hour of that final pointed to either flawed logic or lack of judgement. Or both.
And it could be argued that he didn’t react particularly positively to the criticism which followed this missed opportunity. After arriving on the scene with a touch of a Cockney swagger and a great deal to say for himself, he’s looked a little too easily bruised and perhaps even thin-skinned over the last couple of weeks – ever since copping it in the neck for allowing Patrick Thistle to equalise in a Scottish Cup tie at Ibrox as an act of sporting integrity.
It’s no wonder Beale could hardly believe the reaction to that particular decision. His excellent early work deserved a great deal more than a mocking, mean-spirited banner unfurled at his expense in his next game.
In fact, that outstanding gesture of sportsmanship was willfully taken out of context by a group of fans who should be backing his desire to return their club’s former standards rather than ridiculing him for wanting to do so. Perhaps that’s why they then aimed fire at the hierarchy with their next protest, which came against Kilmarnock, as Beale chalked up an 11th top-flight win from his first 12.
But it does all feel like he is attempting to hold more than just a team together while he attends to the front of house as infighting rages on behind him. He’s having to keep a full-scale revolt from the door. Good luck with that if he dares to drop anything at Easter Road tonight. It’s certainly a steep learning curve for a man with so little in the way of managerial experience to fall back on, having taken on this unruly behemoth on the back of just 22 games in charge at QPR.
And the elephant in the Ibrox bootroom comes in the shape of a Celtic side hitting historic heights of consistency. In this particular pressure pot, it doesn’t matter that Beale has taken 34 points from a possible 36 when Celtic remain nine clear at the top with a goal difference growing by the week.
That’s not just grossly unfair on the newcomer – it’s entirely unreasonable – but it’s also the awkward reality of the matter where this warped sense of rivalry and one upmanship is concerned. Beale can’t afford to feel sorry for himself as he was aware of the rules of engagement when he first started jostling for position for the job at a time when the previous manager was being overwhelmed by the same relentless, suffocating demands.
But neither can he be blamed for the miscalculations of the men above him who continue to make the job of reeling in Ange Postecoglou – or just clinging on to his coat-tails – even more of a stretch than it already was. Perhaps now his feet are more firmly under the desk after the first 100 days, Beale may even privately agree with the sentiment behind the latest banner. It does indeed feel like time for change.
But he can’t be expected to fix all that’s wrong off the pitch while attempting to keep pace with Celtic on it. They don’t call it a great depression for nothing.
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