SIR DAVID MURRAY has revealed he told Rangers NOT to sack Giovanni van Bronckhorst — and feels the Dutchman got a “raw deal” at Ibrox.
Van Bronckhorst, who was bought and sold as a player during Murray’s Gers reign, led the team to the Europa League final and won the Scottish Cup three years ago.
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He was sacked less than six months later and replaced by Michael Beale, who lasted just a year in the Ibrox dugout.
Now former owner Murray has told for the first time how he advised then chairman Douglas Park and his director son Graeme not to make the change.
Speaking exclusively to SunSport, Murray said: “I met the Parks at the time van Bronckhorst was coming to an end.
“I suggested that they stood still with van Bronckhorst and keep him.
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“It seemed pointless to get rid of him.
“I don’t want to seem smart after the event but the Beale exercise did not work and it cost a lot of money.
“There is van Bronckhorst now so highly rated that he’s about to become the No 2 at Liverpool.
“He did reasonably well in Turkey and won the Super Cup with Besiktas.
“He was one penalty kick from being up there with the greats. I think he got a raw deal. But it’s not my decision. I’m only speaking as an observer now.”
Van Brockhorst cost Gers £5million in the summer of 1998 and spent three years at Ibrox under countryman Dick Advocaat before an £8m move to Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal.
When he returned as boss to succeed title-winning Steven Gerrard, he led Gers to the 2022 Europa League final against Eintracht Frankfurt in Seville.
They lost on penalties after a nerve-shredding 1-1 draw and were denied just a second European trophy in the club’s history.
They then beat Hearts at Hampden days later to lift to the Scottish Cup for the first time in 13 years.
But a poor start to the next campaign prompted the board to axe van Bronckhorst, now linked with a job as Arne Slot’s assistant at English Premier League champions Liverpool.
Murray, who owned Gers for 23 years, believes the call was one of many decisions that didn’t need to be made.
He said: “You had a dysfunctional board. Honestly, when you have directors putting in loans of £2m or £3m, everyone wants a say.
“You can’t run a football club by committee.
“Whether it’s me or whoever, you need one dominant person to be making decisions.
“It’s difficult because everything was done with good intentions.
“But it’s just not been joined-up thinking. They’ve not been working as a team.
“I looked at the directors’ box sometimes and thought ‘He’s put in £2m, he’s put in £5m’. It’s like rotating who’s putting the loans in.
“Some of the people will need their loans back.”
Murray sold the club to Craig Whyte for £1 in May 2011.
But Gers nosedived into administration and liquidation and plunged into the fourth tier of Scottish football.
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The steel tycoon maintains those financial catastrophes were avoidable. Despite invitations, he has never returned to Ibrox since — and isn’t sure he’ll go back in the future.
He revealed: “I’ve been asked back but my life has moved on. Life has different stages.
“I was at Rangers for too long — 23 years was far too long. It was a huge part of my life.
“Although people remember the difficulty at the end, which I accept, we had some great times as well.
“I’ve not been back to a game. Yes, I would go back.
“But there’s nothing worse than the old guy going back to the place he ran before. It’s time to move on. I’ve got a different life.
“The past is the past and, for me, it’s time to move on.”
Writing in his new autobiography, Murray has apologised for selling Gers to Whyte.
He cites the global financial collapse and personal health issues as contributory factors in the decision.
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But he also believes the hardline stance of HMRC — which later softened — scared off other potential buyers and pushed him into the arms of Whyte.
He said: “HMRC paralysed the club. Okay, I’m responsible, I’m in charge.
“But they put in fines and costs for running what they called an ‘illegal’ tax scheme.
“When we handed the club over, there was a £75m HMRC liability hanging over us. It became greater because Craig Whyte didn’t pay the bills.
“But I find it so annoying that the final settled amount — after HMRC finally admitted it wasn’t an illegal scheme — was £33m.
“If they had been open and honest in the negotiations at the time, we could have handled it.
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“They sterilised the club and put people off.
“Are you telling me the squad wasn’t worth £33m or the stadium wasn’t worth £33m?
“People can blame me all they want but, with the greatest respect, there was a global recession.
“It was so bad the Royal Bank were about an hour away from no money coming out of the ATMs.
“Most people who have dealt with me in business still deal with me.
“I’m close to people. When people work with you and they’re in the trenches, they know the truth.
“People standing on the touchline and commenting don’t know the full story.”
– Mettle: Tragedy, Courage & Titles by Sir David Murray, is on sale Thursday July 3 from Amazon and all good bookshops.
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Preorder on Amazon here.
Sir David is donating his royalties to Erskine Hospital.
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