Walter Smith has issued a veiled warning to Madjid Bougherra after the Algerian defender returned late from international duty for the third time this season.

The manager downplayed the fact that Bougherra had once again gone AWOL this weekend, pointing out that the player had not been expected to feature against Kilmarnock, but his patience is clearly wearing thin.

Bougherra was granted permission by the Ibrox side to attend a celebratory function in his homeland on Thursday after helping Algeria to qualify for the 2010 World Cup finals, but he was expected to report back into Glasgow late on Friday.

He failed to appear and while Smith will speak privately to Bougherra this week, the player is still expected to be in the starting line-up for tomorrow’s Champions League match against Stuttgart at Ibrox.

The manager hinted that 17-year-old Danny Wilson has been impressive enough to be considered as Bougherra’s replacement but, given what rests on the tie, the Algerian is likely to go straight back into the team, discipline problems or not.

“He has been late three times, but he has not missed three games,” said Smith. 
“I have to speak to him and see what we are getting. We will have to wait and see how it develops.

“It isn’t a big deal. As a manager you just have to handle that.

“He asked for permission to go to the celebration event last Thursday but we expected him back on Friday night. That was alright because I had already decided that I wouldn’t play him on Saturday.

“If a player has been out for as long as he had and then comes back and plays two matches, especially the magnitude of the games that he played in, then I wouldn’t have considered him for the game against Kilmarnock anyway.

“But the fact that he didn’t turn up is always a bit of a problem. If people are not making an attempt to get back to their club for effectively what they do for a living then that is going to be a problem. But we are not the first club to be left to handle that type of situation.

“It is not a great issue as far as I am concerned, it is just another managerial decision that I have to make. That is all it is. It is not a major issue with the way that young Wilson is playing anyway.”

Bougherra’s lack of regard for Rangers does not bode well for the long-term relationship between club and player. It is a question of when rather than if he leaves and Smith is already grooming a replacement in the form of Wilson, who continues to quietly impress.

“He has handled that position as well as any young boy I have seen at that age,” said Smith. “I compared him to David Narey recently and that is high praise. He has come in and played in a similar manner to the way that Davey did and that is a credit to him.”

Meanwhile, Jim Jefferies, the Kilmarnock manager, could be without Kevin Kyle for Saturday’s game against Hearts after the striker suffered a facial wound in a clash with Allan McGregor.

“He has a deep cut on his cheek but the danger is that it could open up again just because of where it is,” he said. “We’ll keep our fingers crossed that he’s OK.”

More painful to Jefferies was Kilmarnock’s first-half defending.

“Ryan O’Leary had a torrid time in the first half and I thought about taking him off. But, credit to him, after taking a bit of a roasting at half-time, he stuck to his task better,” said Jefferies.

“I don’t think we have had as much possession at Ibrox, or worked the goalkeeper as much, but we can’t defend the defence in the first half. We could have lost one or two more.”