Rangers have 'dropped the ball' over Ibrox stadium work delays as club legend demands 'proper answers' for fans

Kris Boyd is adamant Rangers are already 'behind the eight ball' in the Scottish Premiership title race with Celtic before the 2024/25 season has officially got underway due to delays over construction work being carried out at Ibrox.

It has been widely reported in recent days that the works currently taking place on the Copland Road stand will not be finished in time for the start of the league campaign in August because of delays over steel shipments from Asia - and former Light Blues striker Boyd has slammed the news by claiming those excuses “don’t wash”.

Ibrox officials are now facing a race against time to find manager Philippe Clement and his first-team squad a temporary home to fulfill their home fixtures in the short term. However, Boyd reckons it could be October before Rangers supporters finally get to see their team play a proper home game in their own ground again. He insists it’s “simply not good enough” and that fans deserve “proper answers”.

Writing in his Scottish Sun column, Boyd said: “We deserve better. Rangers fans have unveiled banners with those words a few times at Ibrox in recent years. Nobody could blame them if they do so again in the coming months. Well, that is if Ibrox is able to host a game any time soon. There are only 36 days until the start of the season and we still don’t know where Rangers will be playing their home fixtures in the early weeks of the campaign. Or months, going by the average delay to any kind of building work. With so many season-defining games coming up, it’s a crazy situation to get yourself into.

“Rangers fans, in their tens of thousands, have parted with their hard-earned cash to buy season tickets for 2024-25. Not that it makes them any more important, but there are also supporters who have bought hospitality packages for Ibrox at an increased cost. And if Rangers relocate to Murrayfield or Hampden temporarily, where does it leave them? None of these fans have been given an answer on where they will be watching their team. Rangers could be five or six home games in before the punters get to see them at Ibrox. As those banners have stated in the past, the fans deserve better, Rangers have claimed the hold-up is down to delays with steel coming in from Asia. Apparently a project manager has already carried the can and been relieved of his duties.

“I’m sorry, these excuses don’t wash. It’s nowhere near good enough. This whole situation needs to be addressed properly by Rangers. The club’s bosses were voal last season about the state of Dundee’s pitch after multiple postponements - and rightly so. But I bet Dens chief John Nelms is thinking to himself now, ‘At least we had a stadium to play in...’. It’s crazy that Rangers have got themselves in this mess. I find it hard to believe really.

“Listen, these Ibrox upgrades have been planned for a while, and I am all for making sure every supporter gets the best possible experience of watching their team. But was it really a wise decision to embark on the work this summer? The timing was always going to be tight with the new season coming around so quickly Surely, Rangers should only have started work on the Copland Road stand with a guarantee it would be finished in time for August? Right now, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s touching October before Ibrox is available. My old club has dropped the ball big-time on this and you wonder just how damaging it might be for them. In terms of the title race, Rangers are already behind the eight ball before a game has even been played.”