Rangers boss Mark Warburton pinpoints moment from last season that has inspired targets to join

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Glasgow Rangers boss Warburton has brought several new faces to Ibrox already this summer.

Mark Warburton has claimed that it was Rangers’ semi-final win over Celtic in the Scottish Cup which has helped the Light Blues convince potential targets to come to Ibrox this summer, the Evening Times reports.

In preparation for their return to the Scottish Premiership, the Gers have already completed several signings, including Clint Hill, Joey Barton and Jordan Rossiter.

But with all three men leaving clubs in the top two tiers of English football to join Warburton’s side, the Rangers boss has pinpointed the game against their Old Firm foes – which they won on penalties after dominating much of the contest – as the moment that persuaded their targets that the team were heading in the right direction.

“If there is one factor that weighed in our favour, it was the semi-final,” he told the Evening Times.

“Everyone I know in football watched it. I had more texts about that game than any other in my life. They all watched it and they saw the passion of the fans, a good quality game, the coverage, everything.

“That, for me, was the deciding factor that made people decide they want to be part of that.”

Before the Hampden Park showdown against the Hoops, it was difficult to predict just how strong the club would be at the highest level. Though they were running away with the Scottish Championship title by that stage, and had knocked two Premiership teams out on their way to the last four of the competition, they had not faced any of the pace-setters in the top flight since Warburton took charge.

But the result, and the performance that came with it, surely proved to many that while they still have a huge amount of work to do to sustain that kind of success over a long period of time, they have the potential to compete for trophies in the near future, which would have undoubtedly appealed to those who have already joined, as they share the same determination to help them take that next step.