Rangers fire CEO Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell

Rangers were ranked eighth in the Scottish Premier League, 11 points behind leaders Heart of Midlothian, and failed to qualify for the Champions League when former Southampton coach Martin was sacked.

They have closed the gap to nine domestically under new boss Danny Rühl and are up to fourth place – but have now lost all four Europa League matches – the last two under the German – amid criticism of their summer transfer business.

“Responsible change is measured and consistent,” Kavanagh said. He added: “Our first priority was improving athletic performance, and this is what led to our decision to part ways with Russell and bring in Danny.”

“Danny has now begun the process of improving performance on the pitch and this has given us the opportunity to focus on other parts of the club.”

Stewart took over as chairman in December after 18 years at Old Trafford, rising to become United’s chief executive, having previously spent five years with the Champions League’s commercial agency.

He was also appointed to the board of the Scottish Professional Football League five months ago.

Thelwell joins Rangers after three years as director of football at Everton, having previously been head of sport at Major League Soccer club New York Red Bulls.

Cavenagh said: “Patrick and Kev are both brilliant executives and have given a lot to the club during their time with them.” “I’m not here and I’m not going to throw dirt on either of them.

“I appreciate them very much both personally and professionally. It’s the fact that the club needs different things today than it did six months ago.

“We have already started the recruitment process and hope to have appointments soon, but we will prioritize quality and suitability over speed.

“Change like this is always painful, especially when it involves people we care about.

“But at the same time, we are very excited about this opportunity to bring new leadership to this great club.”

Kavanagh added that Ruhl “will continue to get all the support he needs.”