THE scenes of befuddling bedlam that unfolded on Friday night were meant to be behind Rangers. Nobody had thought for a second that it would be all plain sailing after chairman Dave King and his associates took over the running of the Ibrox club in the spring of 2015 but the hope among supporters was that, with “Rangers men” now in charge, at least there would be a greater transparency and proficiency to proceedings. There would be no more episodes of bitter internecine squabbling or the sense of a club lumbering uncertainly from one crisis to the next. Rangers would be driven forward by a sense of purpose and a unified front.

There was no real sign of either, however, as the end came for manager Mark Warburton, his assistant David Weir and head of recruitment Frank McParland. The statement released on the club’s official website around 9pm was fairly coruscating in its criticism of the management team and their reported lack of focus and loyalty. Then came the counter-claims, dribbling out from various sources, that there had actually been no resignations offered, amid stories that Warburton was planning on turning up for training as usual the next morning. All of it played out over several hours in front of a social media audience who devoured every update with an increasing sense of disbelief. It was like taking a time machine back to 2012.

The morning after the night before, however, offered a chance for less frenzied reflection. And two things became clear. One is that there is a paucity of strong, clear leadership at Rangers. King broke his silence yesterday afternoon to deliver a statement on recent developments but it was a rare public utterance from a man based in South Africa who has rarely stuck his head above the parapet. King has instead left the day-to-day running of the club to others, namely managing director Stewart Robertson and finance and administration director Andrew Dickson who were both tasked with driving to the club’s Murray Park training ground to speak to the squad yesterday morning.

In what would prove to be his final address to the Scottish media, Warburton revealed that he rarely spoke directly to King and that all his dealings with the board went through those two. Neither, though, it seems, has any great clamour for the limelight. Robertson had considered running for a place on the SPFL board last summer before deciding against it, while Dickson has been at Ibrox in different roles since 1991 while deliberately maintaining the lowest of profiles. While chief executive Peter Lawwell unquestionably runs the show at Celtic, there is no obvious comparable figure across the city. If King isn’t to become the visible and audible presence Rangers evidently needs, then someone else needs to step up and fill that void.

The other, perhaps more pertinent, question to ask is: where do Rangers go from here? King had surprised many by plumping for Warburton in the summer of 2015 ahead of a more obvious appointment. On the back of familiar faces in Ally McCoist, Kenny McDowall and then Stuart McCall, it was a bold move. Warburton had impressed during a short spell at Brentford, had a reputation as a modern manager, and would bring Weir along with him to appease the traditionalists.

A successful first year, in which they won the Championship at a canter, soon gave way to that infamously difficult second season that many managers endure. Warburton’s case was not helped by the fact that Rangers remain something of a conundrum, a club with all the same ambitions and level of expectation as in the pre-liquidation era but with little of the wherewithal to make that a reality, especially when up against a now rampant Celtic who are already threatening to move out of Rangers’ reach.

It will be instructive, then, to see who King and his board turn to next. It makes sense at this juncture in the season to apply a temporary fix – someone like Alex McLeish ought to deliver the return to European football that King says is this season’s key objective – before undertaking a more extensive search for a new manager in the summer. That may also include a new structure, with a suggestion that the club may again revisit the idea of appointing a head coach working under a director of football.

Rangers will remain a big draw for aspirational managers given the size of the club and its fanbase but whoever lands it will face almost unreasonable demand to challenge immediately for the title, while also recruiting well and also creating a pathway from the youth academy into the first team. Warburton was thought to be the man who could pull all that together but has walked away after less than two years in charge, the latest act at a club that can’t seem to extricate itself from turmoil and drama.