Pedro Caixinha to set to wield the axe over Rangers squad

RANGERS manager Pedro Caixinha has revealed he will stick to players he knows well when he begins his rebuilding job.

The Portuguese coach is set to start the process of telling his current players whether they are in his plans for next season or not.

And he is poised to replace the departing players with others he knows he can rely on.

Caixinha, who has worked in Portugal, Greece, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Qatar, told Rangers TV: “We say we only know the players when you really work with them on a daily basis. One thing is for sure, we have identified the needs and the characteristics which are really good as a starting point.

“But we want to reduce the risks – so what I am going to look for are players that I know, either from having worked with them before or because I have watched them playing on a regular basis.”

Caixinha stated that he wanted reliable, consistent players and added: “We have our list of targets. We are working on that and we are in the market, that much I can tell you.

“The club is willing to invest and we know where we can go with that sort of investment.

“Some players may need a higher investment, and others are maybe out of contract.

“First of all, we will look for men. Only men can take this job. Also, we need strong characters and strong personalities. We need a winning mentality. And, of course, we need quality players.”

Kenny Miller signed a new one-year contract last week which leaves 38-year-old Clint Hill and the barely-used Philippe Senderos as the only two first-team players who are out of contract in the summer, along with loan players Jon Toral and Emerson Hyndman.

But Caixinha, whose team play Partick Thistle on Sunday, looks likely to tell other players that they are free to find new clubs.

He said: “We have been assessing for a long time and because I am someone who leads by example, I want all our players to know that I will shake his hand and say: ‘Thank you, but our time ends here’. Or I will say: ‘Let’s keep going’.

“I will start those conversations maybe at the beginning of next week. As I always say though, we work until the last day and treat it like it’s the first one.

“We are professionals. Even for example, when I am about to end a contract my job is to do my very best until the end.

“You are still defending the badge and you still have a contract with the club. We are all professionals, we all live for football, we all live for Rangers and we all live for winning.”