Michael Beale's Rangers return reasons were sound but usurping Celtic a step too far for Stefan Johansen

Former Celtic star Stefan Johansen says Michael Beale is one of the best bosses he’s ever worked under.

The Norwegian played under Beale briefly at QPR before the Londoner answered Rangers’ call to return to Glasgow and replace Gio van Bronckhorst last year. That meant leaving Loftus Road after just a few months in charge, having already rejected the chance to speak to Premier League Wolves.

But Johansen said he gets why Beale bounced back up the road. He would have preferred to see him stay with Rs, but knew that the other Rangers were just too hard for the manager to resist. He told the Mail on Sunday: “I got on really well with Mick. I had a few chats with him and he explained his reasons. When he told me why he wanted to go, I completely understood it. I wanted him to stay but his reasons were fair enough. And I have a lot of respect for him as a man. That's football. And family.'

“I thought he was an unbelievable manager, just his ideas. When he came in we had a few long chats where he explained things to me as captain, the standards he wanted.

“I would go so far as to say he is one of the best I have worked with. And, as a new manager, that is saying something.

“He'd been working under Gerrard for so long but the way he came into QPR was top notch. He turned down Wolves and I always said I hoped he would stay. At the time we were in a good spot, close to the top of the league, chasing promotion.”

Despite their relationship, Johansen stops short of wishing his former manager well against his former club. Johansen spent two years at Celtic between 2014 and 2016 and revealed he was quick to mark Beale’s card after Old Firm victories for the Hoops.

“I gave him a lot of stick about Celtic,” he added. “When we were