THE appointment of Mark Warburton is, for all the focus on his lack of experience and the size of the club he was previously employed by, considered by many to be something of a coup for Rangers.

 

The 52-year-old, who ended weeks of speculation when he signed a three year contract with the Ibrox club yesterday, has spent just a season and a half as a manager in his own right in senior football.

Having previously performed a variety of different roles in the game - running a school team on a part-time basis, working as a youth coach, overseeing an academy and serving as a sporting director - he took over Brentford midway through the 2013/14 campaign.

Only being in charge of a lower league club in England which attracts average home attendances of just 10,821 for less than 18 months is hardly, the cynics have suggested, suitable preparation for size of job he has now agreed to take on in Glasgow.

That Warburton led Brentford to promotion from League One in his first season in charge and then, despite having a far smaller budget and playing squad at his disposal than many of his rivals, took them into the Championship play-offs last term has been dismissed or overlooked by those who have derided his arrival.

This undeniably bold decision by the Rangers board is certainly a gamble. Far more accomplished individuals with a greater understanding of the game in this country have taken charge at an Old Firm club in the past and been unable to cope. Whether he can succeed where others before him have failed remains to be seen.

Yet, Warburton, who parted company with Brentford last month due to a "clash of philosophies" with their eccentric professional gambler owner Matthew Benham, has built up a considerable reputation south of the border as a consequence of his achievements at Griffin Park.

Several clubs down south had expressed interest in securing his services in the weeks following his surprise departure from his last job. So, successfully luring him to this country is, given the sort of hype which surrounds him, no small feat irrespective of how he fares in the future.

The challenge now facing Warburton and his assistant Davie Weir is to persuade others to do likewise He has to rebuild a side which is lacking in confidence, short of quality and has been depleted by a raft of departures and win promotion to the SPFL Premiership.

There is - despite the sort of funds which he has been assured will be made available to him by club directors and which his rival managers in the second tier of Scottish football receive only a fraction of - a daunting task lying ahead for him. It is one, though, he appears relaxed about and is looking forward to starting.

When asked if it would be difficult to convince players to follow him to a Championship club in Scotland, he said: 'It could be an issue. But, then again, look at where we are today. When you look at the Blue Room and the Trophy Room here at Ibrox, how can you not be inspired by that?

'I've been given a tour of the stadium that took an hour-and-a-half this morning. I've been to a lot of football clubs with big grounds, but you can't help but be hugely impressed by what you see. The training ground, the history of the club and the stadium are our selling points. We have a very positive, very ambitious outlook.

"You've got to look at number one targets, number two targets, long term options, short term options. You've got to be prepared. I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't have that. But it's not about the numbers. If I don't get any players who won't add value then I won't sign anyone.

"We've had some positive discussions and hopefully we can move forward. Our job is to make sure we bring to the club players who are good for the club, they have to represent that value."

Warburton has also been charged with doing something no other Rangers manager in modern times, not Dick Advocaat, not Alex McLeish, not Paul Le Guen, not Walter Smith and not Ally McCoist, has done entirely successfully before him.

He has to promote the best players who are coming through the youth ranks at Murray Park to the first team and then endeavour to develop their skills and turn them into regular starters.

The man who failed to make the grade as a professional footballer under Jock Wallace, the former Rangers manager, at Leicester City in the late 1970s, though, has extensive experience in that area.

The former City of London trader, who worked in the stock markets for years before quitting to pursue a career in football, was one of the founders of the Next Gen Series, a cup competition for under-19 teams from around Europe.

He also spent weeks travelling around the continent studying coaching methods at clubs like Ajax and Willem II in the Netherlands, Barcelona and Valencia in Spain and Sporting Lisbon in Portugal. He is hopeful Rangers will benefit from his findings.

"You can't take everything out of what you find at big clubs, but there are good things you can take," he said. "If you go to Barcelona you watch the way the players conduct themselves off the pitch. They are immaculate in everything they do.

"There are no earphones or mobile phones. Their appearance is important. They win matches before they step on the pitch. There is no reason why you can't replicate that at a club of Rangers' stature.

"We want players who are passionate about the club. It's up to us to create an environment where they know that if they don't work hard, they won't get picked. Simple as that."

Being manager of Rangers will, as Mark Warburton will discover in the months ahead, be far from simple. But only time will tell whether giving him this chance is an act of folly or an inspired decision.