Rangers chairman Andrew Cavenagh has announced there will be a £16m cash injection to support summer transfers and other work around the club.
The funds will be raised via a new share issue, while the Ibrox outfit will also increase adult season ticket prices for next season by six-and-a-half per cent.
“Our ambitions are clear – sustained winning and winning sustainably,” he said. “Having now spent 10 months in the club, our views on how to accomplish our ambitions are much clearer.
“We need to create a culture of winning, and we need to continue to prioritise and invest in the men’s first team.
“If we want to continue to improve on the pitch, we need to increase the total amount of resources of the club while also shifting as many of those resources to the men’s first team as possible.
“We don’t believe this is the time to decrease the player and football budget; in fact, we think the opposite.
“We are not asking supporters to do all the heavy lifting. We are raising £16m of additional capital through a new share issue, effective immediately. The capital will be used to support player acquisitions and other club needs. This increases the total capital invested in the club to £36m in the last year.”
What could this mean for the likes of Moore?
Mikey Moore has impressed since joining Rangers on loan
Sky Sports News understands the Ibrox club are keen to keep Spurs loanee Mikey Moore beyond this summer.
The 18-year-old has scored six goals and provided two assists in the league this season, and following his man-of-the-match performance against Aberdeen before the international break said “if it’s right for me next year, then I’d love to stay here”.
While it is expected that head coach Danny Röhl will add to his squad in various areas over the summer, it is thought the business done in the coming months will not be to a similar level, when compared to 12 months ago, when there were over 25 ins and outs.
Will there be a new sporting director?
Former CEO Patrick Stewart (L) and sporting director Kevin Thelwell were sacked last November
Cavenagh also confirmed there are no plans to replace former sporting director Kevin Thelwell, with Jim Gillespie officially joining as CEO earlier this month.
Meanwhile, Sky Sports News understands former Liverpool and Blackburn player Stig Inge Bjornebye, who was brought in as a football consultant and advisor in December, will stay at the club beyond this summer.
“I want our supporters to see themselves in the club, whether on the pitch or in the club offices, and I think some of that has been missing over the last months and years,” Cavenagh added.
Jim Gillespie has started at Ibrox as Rangers’ new CEO, replacing Patrick Stewart
“This starts at the top. Over the last four months, we have reconstituted our executive team. Jim [Gillespie] has joined as CEO and Fraser [Thornton] has become an executive director. We believe our current football structure is working well, and we do not plan to hire a sporting director.
“The executive team is committed to being smaller, nimbler, and more entrepreneurial. We want an executive team willing to get its fingernails dirty. If there is a hole to be dug, we want people fighting over shovels. We want fewer consulting firms and less bureaucracy.
“A culture of winning means returning to Rangers’ historical DNA and standards. I have tried to spend time with many supporters and former players and staff, and their input has been invaluable. Across the club, we need to continue to partner with these individuals, whether informally as thought leaders and advisors or formally as ambassadors and parts of our staff. These links to the past must be strengthened.”
Cavenagh (R) has met with a host of former players since taking over as chairman
What about away crowds at Old Firm games?
Cavenagh also addressed the clash between fans following this month’s Scottish Cup Old Firm tie at Ibrox, reiterating the club welcomes the independent review that was commissioned by the Scottish FA.
Sky Sports News understands talks have already taken place between the club and Police Scotland to ensure away fans are in attendance during the final league meeting later this season.
Police had to keep Rangers and Celtic fans apart after they ran onto the pitch at Ibrox
He said: “We continue to denounce the disorder, property damage, and especially those who denigrated the 66 souls lost in the Ibrox disaster. We fully support the independent review and will work with all relevant stakeholders, while continuing to represent the club and our supporters.”
Will clubs meet to discuss VAR?
Rangers have also proposed a meeting of all Scottish Premiership clubs in order to discuss refereeing standards.
It is believed this could take place in the coming weeks, with top-flight sides keen to work together over the issue.
While Sky Sports News understands Rangers would entertain the suggestion of paying more to help fund full-time referees, or the provision of more cameras at non-live games, there is also a possibility they would consider withdrawing their funding fully if they feel the technology is not performing to the levels required.