© EuroFootball.com
Lithuania's opponent in the 2008 European Championship qualifying group, the Scottish national team, was left without a head coach - Walter Smith, who successfully led the team for two years, resigned from his position and decided to move to the Glasgow club, signing a three-year contract with them.
The 58-year-old W. Smith, who will manage Rangers after a nine-year hiatus, will be assisted by another club legend, Ally McCoist, as well as Kenny McDowall, who recently left the Celtic reserves team. The head coach awaits a legal dispute with the Scottish Football Association, as the association announced that they will take W. Smith to court for "breach of contract" and the Rangers club for "inducing contract termination".
"It's a great pleasure to have Walter and Ally back. I have great respect for both men and their achievements, and I am confident that they will be able to lead the club forward," said Rangers president Sir David Murray regarding the appointment of the coaches.
However, the mood was completely different for the Scottish Football Association's General Director David Taylor after the split with W. Smith: "Walter's departure is a painful blow to the Scottish FA. He did an excellent job with us and the Scottish national team. We are very disappointed that he decided to leave us at such an important time in the 2008 European Championship qualifiers."
With former coach Paul Le Guen from France leaving Rangers, the club began searching for a new coach and offered the position to club legend W. Smith, but Scottish football officials refused to release a coach whose national team under his leadership last year managed to secure three wins and surpassed World Cup finalists France and Italy in the European Championship qualifying Group E. There was even discussion of the possibility for the coach to hold both positions simultaneously, but he chose to work only with Rangers.
"This morning, I met with the General Director of the Scottish FA, Walter Smith submitted a statement of immediate resignation from the position of coach of the Scottish national team. No agreement with Mr. Smith or the Rangers club regarding compensation has been reached, which constitutes a breach of the contract with the Scottish FA," the association's announcement stated.
W. Smith worked for the first time with the Rangers team in the past decade - initially assisting Graeme Souness, and later taking over the team for nine consecutive years, winning the national champions title until finally moving to Everton in Liverpool in 1998.
"I am delighted to return to the position of Rangers coach. The club has always been in my blood, and I cannot wait to start working again with Ally and first team coach Kenny McDowall. I worked with Ally in the national team, and I am also pleased that Kenny will join us at the club," said W. Smith.
The return was also celebrated by former striker A. McCoist, who scored 355 goals in 581 matches for the "Blue" team: "It was a privilege to wear the Rangers jersey for so long, but I am very happy to return as an assistant coach. I was honored to be inducted into the all-time best Rangers team and the club's museum, but this is special. I know the club from the inside and I'm ready for the challenge."
