The Sky Sports pundit predicted on Go Radio’s The Football Show, via the Daily Record, on 14 September that the Gers boss wouldn’t be sacked, suggesting it would be “extremely premature” to do so, with “winnable” fixtures coming up that could see him “claw back” points on Celtic.

But the Welshman did acknowledge “the big reason” the Ibrox board could make a change is if they thought a new boss could rescue the season and wanted to give them as much time as possible, but asked why they would have given Beale the financial backing of a major rebuild in the transfer market if they were willing to dispense with his services so early.

Hartson said: “His plan is to go to St Johnstone at the weekend and win well, then Real Betis in the Europa League. Two wins and you would be amazed by the difference.

“People will be saying he’s the best manager in the world – no – but it takes massive pressure off. He has to win at the weekend and then Betis is a massive game for the club, a game Rangers would be expected to win.

“He’s coming under that pressure because they lost to Celtic, lost the first game to Kilmarnock. He’s brought in ten players and I think it is a little bit crazy, the football world, that people are talking about him losing his job even after four games.

“He didn’t do a lot last season, didn’t win a trophy…the big reason I think they could sack him, although it is extremely premature, is because they want to give a new manager the opportunity to get something out of the season, even this early.

“I personally think they will stick with him. Three games at home after Betis are winnable so he has got an opportunity to claw back the points on Celtic.”

Fair?

While it is pretty wild that Beale is already on the hot seat after overseeing a major rebuild in the summer, which had built up hopes of a strong challenge this season, he certainly could go if he doesn’t start winning regularly.

The two things aren’t mutually exclusive, and the Rangers manager will have known that ahead of time as well, whether it is fair or not.

Rangers have played nine games in all competitions so far this season, losing three times and drawing two more, so while it is undoubtedly very early to contemplate removing the man in charge it is certainly a record that won’t cut it at Ibrox if it continues, just as Beale’s record of one win in six Old Firm derbies won’t.

It would be wrong to suggest that the manager’s tenure has been a nightmare throughout because there have been some positive signs along the way, but at the crucial points he has pretty much always come up short.

If he were sacked now there would be some who saw it as an overzealous reaction, and yet a proportion of the fanbase would still be annoyed it had taken so long, and neither would necessarily be wrong because it is impossible to know how his reign would turn out six months or a year down the line.

What it almost certainly would be is expensive since the club sacked Giovanni van Bronckhorst less than a year ago after bringing a load of targets for him over that summer, and have just signed nine new men for Beale.

So it would really be in everyone at Ibrox’s best interests if they weren’t forced to make the decision and the team just got winning.