Derek Johnstone believes Rangers are in the “best situation they have been in” for a long time ahead of the 2017-18 season.
Rangers begin the new season with a Europa League first-qualifying round tie against Progres Niederkorn on Thursday night, although their main goal for the campaign will be to end the dominance of rivals Celtic.
But Johnstone’s suggestion that Rangers are in a fantastic place ahead of the upcoming campaign is certainly a bold claim if their poor season in 2016-17 and lack of recent silverware is taken into account.
The Scottish club finished 39 points adrift of Celtic in the Scottish Premiership last term, losing five of their six meetings with the treble-winning Hoops in all competitions, including two 5-1 defeats.
Manager Pedro Caixinha has since made wholesale changes to the first-team squad at Ibrox, bringing in no fewer than eight new additions, whilst casting several of their senior stars onto the scrapheap.
Rangers will have almost a brand new identity heading into the domestic campaign, and former Ibrox player Johnstone has delivered his verdict on their widespread change.
He wrote in his latest column for the Evening Times: “Going into the new campaign, Rangers are in the best situation they have been in for some time.
“That is why the fans are excited and they have sold out at Ibrox. They can see positive things happening at their club and there is a feel good factor.
“If that is to continue, Pedro must do his bit in terms of performances and results. There are no excuses now. He can’t, and he won’t, say ‘well, these aren’t my players.’ This is Pedro’s team now.”
Rangers can get their campaign off to a flying start with a win over their Luxembourg opponents in front of their home fans in the Europa League on Thursday.
They must also travel to Progres Niederkorn for the second-leg of their qualifying round tie on July 4, with at least two further rounds of qualifying on the horizon if they seek to reach the group-stages.