Derek McInnes has now been in charge of Rangers for 100 days, marking a pivotal chapter for the club he grew up supporting, played for, and had previously turned down the chance to manage. His time as manager has been marked by a complete reshaping of the squad, but the start was slow and frustrating for fans, who were concerned when Rangers failed to qualify for European competition for the first time in a decade. McInnes was appointed as Rangers manager on 17 June, replacing Danny Rohl. This came just one month and one day after his team, Heart of Midlothian, lost the Scottish Premiership title to Celtic on the final day of the previous season. Despite the challenges, McInnes expressed confidence in his new role, saying, "I grew up a Rangers supporter and I believe this is the right time to take on this prestigious role." The new era under McInnes began on 31 July with a 1-1 draw against Dundee United. McInnes openly admitted the team was not performing well enough to secure a win. The situation worsened on 6 August when Rangers suffered a 2-1 defeat in their Europa League third qualifying round match against Jagellonia Bialystok. McInnes later said, "I just felt we beat ourselves." More setbacks followed, including a 2-1 home loss to Hibernian on 9 August, where striker Youseff Chermitti suffered a serious ACL injury. McInnes reassured fans, "We're not as bad as people think," though another poor performance on 13 August led to a draw with Jagellonia Bialystok, which he admitted was "not great to watch." Despite the early struggles, McInnes secured his first win on 16 August with a 5-1 victory over St Mirren in the Premier Sports Cup, praising the team's attacking flair. However, the European campaign ended in disappointment on 26 August with a penalty shoot-out loss to Jablonec, which McInnes called "embarrassing." A breakthrough came on 30 August when Rangers earned their first Scottish Premiership win under McInnes with a 1-0 victory at Pittodrie, with the manager praising the summer signings. The momentum continued with wins over Falkirk and St Mirren, culminating in a dramatic 2-1 derby victory over Celtic on 13 September. McInnes called it "the performance and result we were all looking for." A week later, Rangers stunned Celtic again with a 1-0 win at Celtic Park, with former interim manager Barry Ferguson praising the team's unity and determination.