SEAN DYCHE is confident Mark Warburton can take Rangers back to the ‘very top’ as he sets his sights on the Premiership title this term.
The Ibrox boss delivered the Championship crown and Petrofac Training Cup during his first campaign north of the border and is now just days away from leading the Light Blues back into Scotland’s top flight.
Rangers will round off their preparations for the big kick-off this weekend when Dyche brings his Burnley side to Ibrox for the second time in twelve months as they count down to their return to the Premier League.
“I think he certainly set his stall out well last year and everyone took to Warbo,” Dyche told Herald Sport. “I have met Walter Smith and what an amazing bloke he is as a manager and a person. I think Warbo has conducted himself well both on and off the pitch for Rangers and that is important when you have had legends of the game like Walter Smith at your club.
“He has done that very well from the off. The way he conducts himself off the pitch is important, he is a bright man and a respectful man and I think he takes that into his football.
“David Weir is very important, he knows all about Rangers, and now Warbo does as well. They know the expectation and it goes without saying that they want to be right up there winning the title.
“We know Rangers were fantastic last year when there was an expectation on them and that is part of the journey in getting back to the top of the Premiership. He is a realist and he will know that can take time sometimes. He is formulating a way of working that can take the club to the very top again.”
It has been a productive few weeks for Warburton as he has put his plans in place for the Premiership and bolstered his Rangers ranks with nine summer signings.
The likes of former Clarets star Joey Barton and Niko Kranjcar are expected to play influential roles for the Light Blues in the top flight this term and Dyche reckons Rangers are an improved outfit from the one his side beat 1-0 at Ibrox twelve months ago.
“They play good football and the quality will rise as the team develops, especially with the good players he has brought in,” he said. “The main thing, as a start point, is to be competitive in every game and see where that takes them. I would like to think, after what they did last year, they would certainly be amongst it.”
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