MARK WARBURTON has told Rangers that he wants to base his next project around a core of young players, a streamlined squad and a commitment to playing passing football.

The 52-year-old Englishman has held talks with the Ibrox club over their managerial position and is also attracting interest from Fulham as he seeks to make a rapid return to work after leaving Brentford along with his assistant, David Weir, at the end of the season.

Warburton has detailed his vision of the future at his next club and much of it will chime with an Ibrox board looking at a wholescale restructuring of all aspects of their business and a target set by the new chairman, Dave King, of bringing in 45,000 season ticket holders.

"I strongly believe in youth," said Warburton. "I really believe that you can get young, hungry players who can embrace ideas and you marshal them with one or two senior pros who can really mentor them. That is a nice balance.

"I am also a big believer in smaller squads. I think Brentford used the least number of players, 24, over the course of the season. I think that tells you that you can keep a squad lean and hungry.

"I don't want to come across as arrogant, but I hope very much that the way we played at Brentford last season tells you a lot about Davie and me.

"People refer to playing the game the right way. That is nonsense.

"It is about playing the game your way. If you win trophies by being very long and direct, so be it, but I like to have players who can dominate a football, are comfortable in possession and enjoy being in possession."

Warburton has also made it clear, though, that he is keen to sign a deal and get down to business as quickly as possible as Rangers edge closer to a making a decision on the man they want to lead them into a second campaign in the SPFL Championship that really must deliver promotion.

The one-time city trader remains the bookmakers' favourite to take over the reins at Ibrox, but he has been open about the fact he has been talking to more than one club over the past few weeks.

Warburton insists that having time to construct a squad and be with them throughout the entirety of pre-season is absolutely crucial for any coach and is evidently looking to have his future sorted out sooner rather than later.

"A lot of people say to you that you should take three or four months out, but that is not my style," he said.

"I like working, I like being busy and I like knowing what I am doing.

"My background is to get straight back into it. You want to keep learning, keep pushing forward and see how good you can be. It is important to do what you think is right.

"This is the most important time of year. Pre-season is vitally important and it is a time when coaches and managers can bond with the players and get their ideas across.

"You have actually got time to work with them. That is the key thing. Later in the year, it is very much reactive. This is the ideal time now and it is important for clubs to get their choice in situ sooner rather than later.

"You have to respect that clubs will make decisions by their timetable, but, last season, we had a really good season (at Brentford) because we had a good pre-season."

Stuart McCall remains a contender for the manager's job at Rangers despite failing to guide the club through the end-of-season play-offs and Warburton refuses to go into detail over what he would do at Ibrox out of respect to him.

"Nothing disrespectful has been done on my part or David Weir's part," he said.

"I have had informal chats with a couple of clubs," he said. "If all goes well, they will go forward from there."

Warburton has also claimed that he has no demands over the level of football in which he manages next, whether that be the SPFL Championship or the second tier of the English game.

"I don't think anyone is in a position to demand a level," he stated. "You have to look at a club and hope the parties have chemistry. Do you get on and do the philosophies align?

"If that all fits into place, you are in a good place."