SIR DAVID MURRAY has welcomed the new US investment in Rangers – but warned fans they must be patient for success.
Andrew Cavenagh and the 49ers Enterprises have bought Gers more than 14 years after Murray sold out for £1 to Craig Whyte.
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The former owner – who spent 23 years at the helm – has revealed he’s already held personal talks with Ibrox chief executive Patrick Stewart.
But he believes the American plan may need as long as five years to come to full fruition and has urged the new board to back boss Russell Martin.
Speaking exclusively to SunSport, Murray said: “It’s obvious that they are going to run it completely differently.
“They are professional business people.
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“I don’t know them well. I briefly met the chief executive and had a chat with him.
“This won’t be a three-month plan. This will be a three to five-year plan.
“They will have to put firm foundations in place. And they will have to manage expectations.
“The first three sales and the first three purchases will give them an idea of where they are going. I wish them well.
“Russell Martin seems a competent young man.
“Will he be given the tools to do the job? Time will tell.
“I don’t think it’s the best draw with Panathinaikos with the second leg away.”
Former Gers defender Martin was appointed just days after the US takeover finally went through earlier this month.
He will take his first game at Ibrox next Sunday in a friendly against Belgian cracks Club Brugge before taking his squad to the FA training headquarters at St George’s Park for a pre-season camp.
They will face Greek side Panathinaikos in the Champions League second qualifying round on July 22 and 30 – with a multi-million pound group stage prize to chase.
Football’s scoop of the century
By Roger Hannah
IT’S The Sun Wot Broke It.
But Sir David Murray didn’t mind that his historic swoop for Maurice Johnston was first revealed on the front page of this newspaper in 1989.
He was just relieved he’d managed to help Graeme Souness pull off a transfer swoop which rocked Scottish football.
Even now, 36 years on, landing the Scotland striker from Celtic’s grasp — and making him the first high- profile Catholic to play for Gers — is regarded as the most audacious swoop of all time.
And Murray recalls: “All the talk was of Johnston joining Celtic. But Graeme came to me and said, ‘Apparently he’s not signed, the paperwork’s not done, we can get him’.
“I asked for a day to think about it, phoned him and said, ‘Yes, I think we should do it for numerous reasons — for football reasons and to remove an area where we can be criticised for not signing Catholic players. And why not make it the best one, who can come in and contribute?’
“Even though at that time Mark Hateley and Ally McCoist were the strikers and had an excellent partnership.
“Finally, just 24 hours before we were due to unveil the player, we took a call from a young journalist at The Sun in Scotland ahead of a story being published.
“On July 10, 1989, The Sun ran half of its front page with the simple headline MO JOINS GERS.
“It certainly didn’t spoil the unveiling. If anything, it ramped up the tension!”
Johnston, who had played with Celts before a spell at Nantes in France, was pictured with Hoops boss Billy McNeill in 1989 but hadn’t signed his contract to return.
Gers boss Souness, who had played with Johnston for Scotland, realised the move hadn’t been concluded and kickstarted the monumental move.
Right-back Max Aarons has arrived on loan from Bournemouth as the first signing of the Martin reign, with midfielder Lyall Cameron having already been signed on a pre-contract from Dundee.
Cavenagh and vice-chairman Paraag Marathe have promised an investment of £20m, albeit some of that cash will go towards off-field projects this summer.
Gers have the scope to boost that transfer kitty with the sales of the likes of Robin Propper, Ridvan Yilmaz and last season’s top scorer Cyriel Dessers.
Lille are also leading the race for frontman Hamza Igamane, while there has been summer interest in the likes of Nico Raskin and Mohamed Diomande.
Murray added: “I don’t think it’s going to be an overnight change.
“They will take a view and they will take time. I hope they give Martin the tools.”
“If they had been open and honest in the negotiations at the time, we could have handled it.
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Martin remains keen on former Leicester defender Conor Coady and has also been linked with moves for new strikers.
Gers are also keen to extend the contract of Belgian midfielder Raskin, who deputised as captain for spells last season.
Martin’s Premiership debut will be against Motherwell at Fir Park on the evening of Saturday, August 2.
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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