Incoming Rangers boss Kevin Muscat was 'most hated man in football' and called 'lowlife'

Kevin Muscat certainly had his fair share of enemies during his playing days, leading to him being described as the 'most hated man in football'. The 52-year-old has emerged as the clear favourite to take over at Rangers as a replacement for the recently sacked Russell Martin. It comes after Danny Rohl and Steven Gerrard both ruled themselves out of the running.

Muscat is currently in charge of Chinese club Shanghai Port, who are on course to win a second straight league title. They could wrap up the honours by the end of this month, meaning Muscat could be in the Rangers dugout for their game against Celtic in early November. Talks are still believed to be ongoing at club level with a compensation package yet to be finalised.

Muscat has made a promising start to management after a colourful playing career, which saw him gain a controversial reputation. A no-nonsense defender, he was known for riling up opponents with his dirty tactics and combative approach to the game.

When he was at Wolves, he angered Ian Wright in a game against Nottingham Forest by pretending to be his team-mate and shouting for him to leave the ball in a dangerous attacking position.

Wright obliged and Muscat cleared the ball away, leaving the England icon furious at his lack of sportsmanship. He later received a second yellow card for a heavy challenge on Muscat in the middle of the park.

Afterwards, Wright angrily described his opponent as a 'lowlife' in his newspaper column for The Sun, adding: "He is a nobody. He knows it, I realise it and a hell of a lot of other people think it.

"I can sleep well and look in the mirror each morning, which is more than a certain Wolves player can probably do. This guy isn't even worthy of mentioning his name."

Wright is far from the only player to have been riled up by Muscat over the years. Another incident came when he clashed with Sheffield United goalkeeper Paddy Kenny in the tunnel during a game against Millwall.

Muscat was sent off and handed a five-game ban as the Blades went on to secure a 2-1 victory. After the final whistle, manager Neil Warnock taunted Millwall players during the post-match handshakes by telling them: "Serves you right for Muscat."

Ashley Young, the former England defender, once revealed how Muscat threatened to 'break his legs' before a game between Millwall and Watford. By the time Young had been introduced as a substitute, Muscat had already been sent off.

Birmingham City defender Martin Grainger also grew frustrated with his antics, saying in 2000: "He is probably the most hated man in football. The bottom line is what goes around comes around. There will be someone nastier who will get him one day."

Although he was almost universally disliked as a player, Muscat was a popular figure at Rangers. He only spent one season at Ibrox but it was a successful one as they clinched the domestic treble ahead of city rivals Celtic.

Many supporters want to see the return of Muscat as their new manager and it will be interesting to see how he approaches the job, having calmed down somewhat from his playing days.