GORDON Dalziel was a member of a Rangers team back in the 1980s which finished fourth in the Scottish title race behind Dundee United, Aberdeen and Celtic – but still went out to win every game they played and every competition they entered.

So the former striker can fully understand the disharmony that exists among the Ibrox support about their current struggle to finish in second spot in the Ladbrokes Premiership in spite of their severe off-field difficulties in recent years.

Mark Warburton, whose side was defeated 4-1 by Hearts at Tynecastle last Wednesday night and drew 1-1 with Ross County at home on Saturday to slip to third in the table, is currently under the greatest pressure of his 19 month spell in charge.

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His admission last week that it could be years before Rangers, whose directors are striving to restore stability, can challenge Celtic, whose board yesterday announced their revenue had doubled to £61.2 million in the second six months of 2016, wasn’t well received.

Dalziel played for the Glasgow institution during a difficult era as well; they had a rookie manager in John Greig, limited funds to spend on new players, a young team and formidable opponents managed by Alex Ferguson, Jim McLean and Billy McNeill.

However, the young forward and his team mates always appreciated what the expectations upon them were – to triumph in every 90 minutes they were involved in and lift every trophy they competed for.

“Mark was just giving an honest answer when he said Rangers were way behind Celtic,” he said. “He is only saying what everyone knows. But unfortunately he’s saying what people don’t want to hear. If you’re a Rangers supporter, it’s a hard one to take.

“Everyone who looks at the situation now knows Rangers are miles away from Celtic. But fans who have grown up in the traditions of Rangers don’t want to hear about finishing second. Being Rangers manager is a difficult job at the moment no doubt about it.

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“I think the fans are realistic and know that finishing runner-up this season would be a progression. But the reaction after the defeat to Hearts was no surprise. The club has always been like that no matter who the manager has been.”

Dalziel added: “John Greig went straight from being a player to being the manager. The switch was very hard. John also had Alex Ferguson at Aberdeen, Jim McLean at Dundee United and Billy McNeill at Celtic. They were all terrific managers. The competition was very difficult.

“But at that time Celtic and Rangers fans still demanded their team won every game and every trophy. You were expected to win the league, the two cups, basically everything you entered. There was no hiding place, no excuses were accepted. The demands were simple.

“If you failed the fans weren’t slow in letting you know about it. But we were all brought up in the Rangers traditions and accepted that. You had to have a winning mentality and that hasn’t changed. You had to win trophies, had to win leagues.”

Dalziel, who now works as a pundit for Radio Clyde, believes that Warburton, whose side take on fourth-placed Championship club Morton at home in the William Hill Scottish Cup on Saturday, has to accept the scrutiny he is under.

"Managing Brentford and managing Rangers are two completely different things," he said. "But Mark has to be brave enough to take the club where he wants to take it.”

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Dalziel, who enjoyed a successful seven year spell in charge of Ayr United after retiring from playing, was at Ibrox for the Rangers game against Ross County on Saturday where he was working for Radio Clyde.

He witnessed the defensive mix-up between keeper Wes Foderingham and centre half Clint Hill which nearly gifted Dutch forward Alex Schalk, who had put the visitors in front early on, a second goal in the first half.

Many Rangers fans would like Warburton, who demands that his team build play patiently from the back, to change his tactics and question whether he has good enough players to execute such a risky game plan.

Dalziel, though, believes the system suits the players who Warburton has assembled since taking over back in 2015 and believes even the best teams in the world can occasionally slip up playing that way.

“It could certainly have been really costly at the weekend,” he said. “Schalk should have scored. If he had, then it was a long way back for Rangers.

“But different managers have different philosophies. Some managers will ask their team to play a long ball up the park. Some managers will want their goalkeepers to pass it out of defence. The important thing is to keep possession.

“I can remember watching Barcelona v Manchester City earlier this season. Barcelona did exactly the same thing. They tried to play it from the back, Manchester City took the ball off them and scored. The best teams in the world will makes mistakes playing it out from the back. The greatest team in Europe did it.

“But it’s what the manager believes is best way for Rangers to play with the players they have at their disposal. He must think he has the players who can play from the back. He must believe that is the best system.

“No disrespect to Kenny Miller, Joe Garner and Barrie McKay, but if the goalkeeper launches it up the park they aren’t going to win a lot of headers against 6ft tall centre backs. He sees the right way to play as being from back to middle to front. He will live and die by that."