Steven Gerrard’s side have begun preparations for the brand new season and have already played two friendlies, but are still without several first team stars.

 

A host of Rangers’ senior players, including Glen Kamara, Filip Helander, and Alfredo Morelos are yet to report back for pre-season training, having represented their nations at the European Championship and the Copa America.

 

 

Rangers first team coach Beale is of the view that a number of players representing their respective nations at the summer tournaments is a sign that the Light Blues are a big club.

 

Having been proud of them playing for their countries, Beale is now looking forward to welcoming them back at the club as he feels Rangers’ training levels will skyrocket when they return.

 

 

You can tell you’re a big club when you have a number of players away in the summer tournaments, so it has been nice this summer, sending the text messages and watching our players play both in the Euros and the Copa America“, Beale told Rangers TV.

 

So, in that sense, we have probably about 23, 24 players here at the moment and it is a complete split in half really of first team players, young academy players and players that go on loan.

 

 

We have still got 12 or 13 players to come back and start training, when they arrive the standard of the training is going to go through the roof.

 

So, I think weeks three, four and five [of pre-season] are going to be really important.

 

In other seasons, we’ve had maybe three weeks to get ready for the first European game and this season the advantage is it is after the first league game, so we can really focus on Livingston.

 

Rangers will play Arsenal, Blackpool, Brighton and Real Madrid in friendlies before starting their Scottish Premiership campaign against Livingston this month.