FIFTEEN years ago, the Rangers were on course to win their first league title in 4 years.
But despite playing a leading role in the seasons leading up to him, a former key player failed to make a single appearance in what was a memorable campaign.
Under Walter Smith, Rangers won a league and cup double in the 2008/09 season.
The Light Blues took the SPL name on the final day of the season before retaining the Scottish Cup in the centre of Hampden.
These triumphs come a year after a harrowing end to the Gers’ crusade.
Battling on 4 fronts, Rangers failed to win either the SPL name or the UEFA Cup in 2008, although they did bring both domestic cups to Ibrox.
That final defeat in the UEFA Cup would also be the last appearance in history (out of 108 in total) through an ace in midfield.
Brahim Hemdani was freely recruited in the summer of 2005.
It was a first blow for Gers and their boss at the time, Alex McLeish, with the arrival of Hemdani from French giants Marseille, where he was captain of the club.
Hemdani, a defensive midfielder, is not the most striking player, but he is effective in the task he performed.
He only scored two goals for the Light Blues, but both were memorable late draws.
One in the 1-1 draw against Celtic and in the 1-1 draw against Osasuna.
After overcoming an injury suffered early in his career at Ibrox, he was normal in his first two seasons as a Rangers player, but found the games harder to overcome in his third season.
Hemdani, on the other hand, was part of the team that won the League Cup and Scottish Cup that season and also started that defeat in the UEFA Cup final against Zenit St Petersburg in Manchester.
His fourth and final season at Ibrox, however, was not an event, at least personally.
Pedro Mendes and Maurice Edu arrived to bolster the midfield, while Steven Davis arrived on a permanent basis.
As a result, Hemdani found himself completely excluded and was unable to appear alone despite having played a few games for Algeria.
He left Ibrox in the summer of 2009 and has not been heard from since.
Hemdani would no longer play football professionally and for most of the next decade he was largely off the grid.
However, in those days, the 45-year-old Hemdani is back in the game.
He joined FC Côte Bleue in 2017 and spent 3 years as deputy director.
And in 2020, coach of Courbevoie.
Since 2022 he has been at the helm of Marignane Gignag Cote Bleue FC.
It may not be a family name, but Hemdani enjoys good luck at the club.
Located on the outskirts of Marseille, Hemdani led Marignane GCB to promotion last season as champions and now plays in the third tier of French football, two degrees away from Ligue 1.
Hemdani’s men are in the National Championship and although they have adapted well to the next level, they have found that it is BRUTAL to be at the bottom of the league and it is difficult to stay at the top.
This is an 18 team division, the SIX clubs behind are relegated ALL.
Marignane GCB is currently in 16th place with 23 points, although it is only six points behind the ninth and tenth ranked team.
Hemdani’s work at the club has been unsuccessful, with local media proudly claiming that “things are being built” under the former Ibrox star’s guidance.
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