Rangers boss Mark Warburton still has plenty to think about

MARK WARBURTON’S Magic Hat slipped for the first time a week ago.

Dumped out of the League Cup at home to St Johnstone, Rangers failed the first big test of their manager’s reign.

We analyse where the Ibrox club are now and where they’re going.Was Rangers’ defeat to St Johnstone that much of a surprise?THE bookies certainly thought so. Odds of up to 4/1 on a Saints victory were available before the match, and a poorer Rangers team had beaten the Perth outfit last season.

Warburton’s side had swept all before them prior to the defeat. Saints, by contrast, had been inconsistent.

So not a major upset, but a surprise Saints won comfortably. The central defensive pairing of Danny Wilson and Rob Kiernan has appeared vulnerable all season, and especially so against St Johnstone. How does Warburton resolve that?THIS is a big question for the Rangers management team, and especially David Weir, who was a formidable stopper for the Light Blues in his day and now takes responsibility for defensive matters.

The recruitment and introduction into the side of Wilson and Kiernan, two young defenders capable of starting attacks by calmly passing out from the back, was a cornerstone of team rebuilding in the summer.

Their combined failure in the face of pace and direct attacks against St Johnstone has been written off as a one-off mistake by Warburton.

But regular Rangers watchers will testify the warning signs have been there.Warburton has adopted a horses-for-courses approach since Day One. With his team falling short in their first meeting with a Premiership club, will there be wholesale changes to his squad when they are promoted?EVEN this early into his time as Rangers manager, it is obvious the Englishman isn’t slow to take advantage of opportunities.

In the Premiership, he will have greater drawing power and financial resources.

That is likely to mean at least a few new arrivals. Warburton knows he has to make a positive impact in the club’s first season back in the top flight.

Potential casualties, meanwhile, could include the likes of Nicky Clark, Nicky Law and David Templeton. There’s no doubting the ability of both Nathan Oduwa and Gedion Zelalem. But should Rangers be giving them a platform to learn their trade?LOAN players can be a great addition to any squad. Look at Celtic Jason Denayer last season.

But you have to remember there is a reason the individuals concerned have been allowed to come north.

If they were already the finished article, they would have stayed at the club which owns their registration.

It was a little surprising then to see both Oduwa and Zelalem two technically excellent footballers start in a cup tie against St Johnstone when they lack big-match experience.

Warburton has spoken of Oduwa learning in the game itself and becoming more effective as the tie went on but was it a night for relative beginners?

James Tavernier has been a stand-out performer for Rangers (SNS Group)James Tavernier has been outstanding since the start of the season, and was their best player in midweek. Can Rangers hang on to him at the end of the season?HAVING completed seven loan spells in his comparatively short career, it is safe to assume the fans favourite is loving life with Rangers right now.

Whether the fans get to see him in the Premiership is likely to depend on the size of the clubs hoping to lure him away, and how much they are prepared to pay for his services.

Tavernier is English and, having failed to make the grade in five years with Newcastle United, the chance to go back to the English Premier would surely be too hard to resist.

Former City trader Warburton would likewise have to balance the desirability of making a big profit on the player against the potential loss to his squad and the likelihood of a supporter backlash were Tavernier allowed to go. Kenny Miller is one of the few survivors from the previous regime. Is this his last season at the club?ALL good things must come to an end. Miller has been a great servant for Rangers in his three separate spells with the club.

But he will be four months shy of his 37th birthday at the start of the

2016-17 season, and that is old for the high energy role he plays in.

So it would be no surprise were he to bow out at the end of this campaign. Any prospect of the lesser-spotted John Eustace being seen in a Rangers team any time soon?THE admission on Twitter from team-mate Ryan Hardie this week that the former Derby County midfielder is still “working on his fitness” suggests not. But the steel he would provide is required.With Warburton’s rebuilding going well, owner Dave King has avoided calls for him to splash the cash. When does that change?PROBABLY not until next summer.

Rangers have more than enough quality in their squad to win the Championship.

And while they went down to Saints, the victories of Hibs and Morton two clubs they are dominating in the Championship over Aberdeen and Motherwell respectively points to them having a puncher’s chance in the Scottish Cup.Until last Tuesday’s result, many Rangers fans were itching for a meeting with Celtic. Misplaced optimism?ALL week there has been talk about the gap, or lack of a gap, between clubs in the Championship and the Premiership.

One thing that is absolutely certain, though, is that there is a gulf between Celtic and Aberdeen.

The remainder of the top-flight teams. League results over the last 18 months have proved that to be a fact.

Rangers may well reach the level of the top two during Mark Warburton’s time in charge but they aren’t there yet.

They lost 2-0 when they met Celtic in last season’s League Cup semi-final in February and, seven months on, a similar outcome would be likely if the teams met again.What are Rangers’ chances of going through the Championship campaign unbeaten?NOT as good as their comfortable wins in the division so far this season might suggest.

That is not because of any lack of ability, just the sheer demands of going through an entire league campaign without having an off-day.

The Celtic side which won 25 league games on the spin under Martin O’Neill in 2003-04 eventually crashed at home to Dunfermline.

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