Allan McGregor Interview

[JamieD 19,128]

Allan McGregor has a greater cause than most to be hurt by Rangers' demise. The goalkeeper resisted the latest temptation to explore a move to England last summer when penning a five-year contract at Ibrox. In those early days of the Craig Whyte regime, the level of subsequent chaos, culminating in administration by mid-February, was impossible to foresee. McGregor, like so many others, fell victim to Whyte's empty promises.

"There was talk about administration a long time before it happened but I never ever thought it would ever happen," McGregor says. "I don't know why I thought that, maybe just because of the size of the club. I didn't ever think it would come to this. But it did. The club is badly wounded, we wouldn't be at this stage if it wasn't bad."

To onlookers, McGregor will not be seriously affected by what happens next. When agreeing a 75% pay cut to save jobs elsewhere at Rangers as administration set in, he and other senior players had clauses inserted in their contracts which ensures they can depart Ibrox for discount fees this summer. Clubs south of the border will understandably court McGregor at a cut-price £2m; he remains Rangers' prize asset and a player who has improved year on year.

The reality is different. Rather than seize an opportunity to flee a sinking ship, McGregor's sole wish is for the turmoil at Rangers to be positively resolved. The clause, needless to say, would be scrapped at the player's behest if, and at this stage it remains unlikely, Rangers can scramble towards new ownership by June. "I wouldn't have signed a long-term contract last year otherwise," he insists.

"My ideal scenario is still for everything to get sorted here, for me to honour the contract and be successful at the club. Everybody at the club deserves success, in my opinion. If the worst came to the worst and I have to go, there would probably be regret. You just wish everything was perfect and none of this carry on was happening. But it is, and at this moment in time you don't know where it is going to go. I wanted to stay. I wanted to be in the mix to win things every season, which I thought I would, and I have been here since I was a young boy. I love the place, I know everybody. It feels comfortable and feels like home.

"People might think I should have gone to England last year or previous years but nothing happened that meant I could, anyway. There have been loads of people who have done that who say it is not any better; yes it is a bigger league, there is a lot more interest and a lot more money flung at the English league but a lot of people have gone down there and not thought much of it. Others love it, it's down to personal preference and as yet I haven't experienced it. I signed here for five years knowing, hoping or thinking at the time that I would be in the mix to win things every year. I don't know how that represents a lack of ambition."

Rangers' players aren't exempt from the current fear which runs throughout their club. Liquidation remains a very real possibility with no obvious mechanism yet apparent to remove the business from administration. "We gave the administrators time, three months, to get us to the end of the season," recalls McGregor of the pay deal. "I had a horrible feeling myself at the time that on the 31 May we would be in the same predicament. That was just my own gut feeling and it doesn't look good now.

"I know there have been obstacles within that time period that came up, they haven't helped anybody, but things have dragged on and dragged on. Suddenly we are at the end of April, there was supposed to be a preferred bidder in two or three weeks ago then they could do their due diligence and have something concrete. We aren't near that stage yet. I didn't think three months would be long enough, I hope I am so wrong but it isn't looking that way just now."

McGregor had only a single meeting with the discredited Whyte, around which time he saw other key Rangers players, Steve Davis and Steven Whittaker, also sign long-term contracts. Rangers proceeded to tumble out of Europe, at which point the first signs of a funding crisis kicked in.

"If I'm a businessman, I'm not guessing that we will get through to the Champions League, or I shouldn't be," he says. "I would be dealing with exactly what I was getting and if we get to the Champions League, it's a bonus. I would have said that's just normal practice but I don't know what they did."

The Scotland No1 disputes the notion that wage cuts represent easy gestures for high-earning footballers. McGregor, 30, was a key figure as the Rangers squad pressed administrators not to make any level of staff at the club immediately redundant.

"Everybody has taken a massive hit, a massive sacrifice," he says. "People live within their means. I couldn't care how much money you earn; if somebody takes three quarters of that away and then the tax man takes half of the quarter you have left, then you are going to struggle a bit. No matter how much you earn, it still hurts you. My first thought was, when the administrators came in, to try and save everybody's job. We wanted everybody in it together, whether you are a player, work in the cafeteria or are a masseur. The main objective was to save everybody.

"It wasn't easy having meetings every day, you didn't know if you were coming or going. You were never sure that one day they wouldn't just come in and say 'you, you, you and you have to go.' I took it that I wouldn't like it to happen to me, to be told that, so if everybody took it in that respect then we could fight together and plead our case to the administrators."

McGregor is rarely afforded time away from Scottish tabloid glare. The most high-profile player in the country, and his fiancee, appear on front pages at a level which has seldom been at their own behest. In reality, McGregor is perfectly correct to be riled by the routinely incorrect public perception of his character.

"People don't know the kind of person you really are," McGregor says. "They take what they see in tabloid papers and believe that. Once the tabloids here have one or two things about you they just bombard you. They get away with it too much, for me. Lies go out there without people caring about your family and who that upsets. They just want a story. That's why I don't talk to them, when I appear there it has only ever been lifted from club media."

McGregor was, though, by his own admission a guilty party in the scandal which saw he and Barry Ferguson briefly banned from international duty by the Scottish FA in 2009. A late-night drinking session was compounded by offensive gestures made by the duo towards photographers when sitting on a substitutes' bench for their country.

"Obviously it was daft but I'm sure everybody has done something stupid in their life," McGregor adds. "It doesn't bother me now, I've forgotten about it, but it could have been handled a lot better. I think if there was different people involved it would have been handled differently and never been allowed to get to the stage it got to.

"The worst thing about the gesture was the press saying it was to the Scotland fans. If I wanted to do it to the Scotland fans, there was a big green pitch I could have walked on to and done it perfectly easily. It was something else invented by members of the media who think they can read my mind."

And so to Sunday. McGregor refuses to contemplate the prospect of the last Old Firm game of the season being his final appearance in the fixture. What is certain is the level of delight the Celtic support will demonstrate about their old foes' predicament. "I'm sure if it was the other way about, it would be the exact same thing," says McGregor. "You just have to have broad shoulders and deal with it."

The goalkeeper has displayed such attributes already. The football gods should look kindly upon his immediate future.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/apr/27/allan-mcgregor-rangers-administration?CMP=twt_gu

[supermac 115]

This man is a Rangers legend for me. I hope he can see out his career at this club.

[Albertz123 598]

A Ranger.

[eosmhdo 1,879]

no1 for a reason

[rangersross 6,575]

Loyal, passionate, articulate and a fantastic player - he reminds me of Ally.

[SwallowsHisOwnSpunk 7,910]

:McGregor:

[bear down under 28]

This guy is what our club is all about,11 of him please

[Gerwelly 115]

Allan McGregor no more for he is the Goalie!!!

[Bearette 23]

Don't care what anyone says, he is a Rangers legend. Allan McGregor

I just hope to god we don't lose him.

[allanh91 75]

Even in our current predicament, if I were in charge I would turn down a transfer fee for him everytime.

He is a true Rangers legend, strived for so long and hard to get the number 1 shirt, and has wore it with pride and given so much back to the club since he attained it.

[Davey_RFC 122]

Surely he's due a testimonial?

[Senna 735]

Shagger.

[Bluepeter9 5,167]

Good interview and he made his pooints well.

[airdriebluenose 351]

My favourite player for a LONG time now.

Top keeper, genuine guy and a mad shagger

A Rangers legend!

We love you Allan

[southcoastbear 1,639]

Best keeper in scotland by some distance and a true ranger at heart. Let's hope we can hang on to the man who's actions over this tumultuous period have secured his legend status.

Has matured alot over the past couple of seasons and is puting a strong case together for the captain's armband.

[Getstiffed 8,863]

A Ranger.

This.

[rfcgillies 8]

What a fantastic guy. He has matured so much and all of the past issues with the papers haven't affected him. Such class.

[markybear 136]

Just shows the media make assumptions that ppl will leave regardless of what happens and pass it of as fact. Greegsy clearly wants to stay IF a resolution can be reached.

Otherwise I couldn't blame him for leaving, he's got a fiancée and young daughter to support & footy players only have a limited age window to make money, he has to think of himself and his family alongside the club if not before the club.

Good man shagger

[Cos88 283]

Future Hall of Famer

[Amac9 2,060]

The thought of McGregor only playing 4 more games for us is

It will be a devastating loss if we lose him, especially for £2m.

[deleteduser1 169]

Easily one of the best goalkeepers in Europe if not the world and a Rangers man to the core.

It would be nothing short of criminal if we are forced to sell him for a penny under 10 million pounds as he is a better keeper with a far more impressive cv than Craig Gordon had when he went south for 9 million from Hearts.

[gersandy 594]

Id love to see this guy at the gers for the rest of his career. unfortunetley i think he'll be snapped up at the end of the season.

[benbmyers 16]

It would be almost an insult if offers for him didn't come in. No-one knows his thoughts, maybe being given these offers have a direct link to his confidence while playing for us. Either way, I believe he is one of the best keepers ever to put on a Rangers shirt. If he decides to go, I will be absolutely gutted. But there will be no bad blood.