IT may just be pure speculation about a manager whose stock remains high in England as a consequence of his spell in charge of Brentford.

Yet, Mark Warburton has been linked with vacant posts down south far too frequently of late for there to be no foundation at all to the reported interest in him.

Fulham, who were keen on appointing Warburton at the end of last season, and QPR are the latest clubs believed to be monitoring his progress.

If Rangers, who are five points clear at the top of the Championship, continue to flourish on the park as they have been then the interest in him will not disappear. If anything, in fact, it will intensify.

The Englishman has, while describing the stories as “flattering”, publicly stressed his ongoing commitment to the Ibrox club.

And Andy Halliday is confident that he will, despite the prospect of greater riches in his homeland, remain and complete the rebuilding job which he has started so convincingly.

The midfielder's manager is, having worked with considerable success in the City of London for many years after failing to make the grade as a professional footballer, not stupid.

Halliday believes he will appreciate the opportunity he has been given in Glasgow and will resist the temptation to jump ship to a smaller club despite the levels of remuneration being greater.

“When a manager is doing so well, it’s only natural that people will be looking at him, but the gaffer is really enjoying it here,” he said as it was confirmed the Rangers Youth Development Company logo would feature on all academy strips.

“He is thriving off the demands the club’s got. He obviously knows how big the club is and I think he’ll want to stay and achieve the goals he set himself when he was appointed as the Rangers manager.

“I don’t think there will be a bigger club come in for him. I’ve seen a few clubs mentioned, but the demands and status of those clubs don’t compare to here.

“I think the gaffer is thriving on that and when he came here, he has made multiple changes and they’ve all gone pretty well so far. I don’t think he’d want to move on when he still has so much he wants to achieve.

“A lot of the credit we’ve had from the media has been down to him. He came in with not a lot of budget, with a broken squad which was low on confidence and he brought in players who have done well for him.

“Not just that, he’s changed the style of play from last year and he’s changed the results on the park, which is the most important thing.”

Warburton, who had spent less than two seasons as a manager in senior football before being brought in as Ally McCoist’s permanent successor, has been visibly irked by the reaction to the two defeats he has suffered to St. Johnstone and Hibs this term.

But Halliday, who has firmly established himself as a first team regular at the club he grew up supporting as a boy despite being used out of position as a holding midfielder, believes the excessive, some would say unrealistic, demands on the team to succeed at Rangers have brought out the best in him.

“When he was at Brentford last season he was going to places like Derby, Nottingham Forest and Middlesbrough and they weren’t expected to win,” he said. “A draw was a good result. But a draw for us is never a good result.

“But I think he is thriving on it, I think he is enjoying it and I think that is why he wants to stay here – to achieve the goals he set out to achieve.

“He is getting on with his job day to day just like we are. That proves to me that he is set on what we are trying to do here. We have got a long way to go with the plan we have set ourselves, not just this season, beyond that as well. It is part of the ride we are on just now.”