GIOVANNI van Bronckhorst has told his Rangers players they can force their way into his first team at Ibrox if they impress him in training after handing Scott Wright a start in a domestic fixture for the first time.

The Dutchman played Wright on the right of his front three in the cinch Premiership match against St Mirren in Govan on Boxing Day and had no cause to regret his decision.

The former Aberdeen player opened the scoring in the first-half – his fourth goal of the 2021/22 campaign – and performed well during a match which the home side won 2-0.

“When you are playing against a tight defence you need players who are comfortable on the lines, as you want to use the width to stretch them,” said Van Bronckhorst.

“That’s why I started Scott. He is very good in that position and he brought exactly what I wanted him to bring. I thought Scott would bring us danger on the right side, especially against a very defensive unit.

“We have so many different qualities in players up front and in midfield, so we can adjust our tactics depending on the opponent.”

The only game Wright had previously been involved in from kick-off under Van Bronckhorst was the meaningless Europa League encounter with Lyon in France at the start of December.

But the former Netherlands internationalist was pleased with the application which the 24-year-old attacking midfielder had shown in training in the build-up to the St Mirren match.

He has stressed to players who are not regular starters for Rangers, whose next Premiership match is against Aberdeen at Pittodrie on January 18, they can earn a place in his plans at Auchenhowie. 

“I’m looking at the performances of the players, not just in games, but also in training, “he said. “I thought Scott would cause some danger on that right side and he did well.

“He did well so I think the message is clear, if you perform well, if you're training well, you always have a chance to play in the games."

Meanwhile, Van Bronckhorst revealed that he fielded Joe Aribo, Ianis Hagi, Ryan Kent and Wright against St Mirren because the visitors only played Curtis Main up front. 

“We had an attacking team with Hagi more in the midfield,” he said. “They only played with one striker so I don’t need my full-backs to be really deep defending.

“I always look at the opposition and put my players in the positions I want them when we have the ball. The players are now used to getting in to spaces they didn’t occupy in the past.”