PEDRO Caixinha was under no illusions about the magnitude of the task that awaited him at Rangers when he agreed to take over as manager at Ibrox back in March.

The side he inherited had struggled for form, results in the top flight had been poor, they were some distance behind runaway leaders Celtic in the table and their supporters were growing increasingly disgruntled.

Yet, the Portuguese coach, whose team has just been soundly defeated by their city rivals in back-to-back games, has admitted he had failed to properly grasp just how big a rebuilding job he faced in Glasgow when he was appointed.

Asked if the undertaking which he has taken on in Scotland was greater than he had initially envisaged, he said: “You only get to know things deeply when you have worked on the pitch, when you are here and seated in the job. But to be honest, yes, to be honest, yes. Not so much more difficult. Just that I feel as if there is more work to do.”

Caixinha will inform each of his players if they have a future under him of if they are surplus to requirements following the Ladbrokes Premiership match against Partick Thistle at Firhill tomorrow. It is obvious, however, that he has not been greatly impressed with the quality of the squad he has taken over.

“When a football man or a football fan think from outside about the name of Rangers they think ‘wow – massive’,” he said. “The structure of the club is incredible. It’s incredible the support we have, the facilities and the fans at Ibrox. Everything is great, but you need to understand that the main actors in this game are the players.

“When you reach the level of a big team like Rangers, when you make any sort of changes, the knowledge of the footballer you are adding to the game should be like this (Caixinha snaps his fingers). That’s the main difference that I was supposed to get here or find here and I didn’t really find it.”

The 46-year-old, though, is undeterred. “I am a guy of challenges,” he said. “I am on the way to the task so I have no problem with it. I need to be here and I need to be strong to accept this massive challenge.

“I know what brings me here. I know that what happened last weekend can happen. But I came to work to prevent this happening in the future. I know it’s a massive job I have at this club and I’m not going to turn around.”

Only two current Rangers players, Clint Hill and Philippe Senderos, are out of contract in the summer. That would seem to present Caixinha with a problem; he may not be able to offload underperforming players who are earning good money.

The Portuguese coach, though, is confident he will not experience any issues on that front if he is straight with the players he does not see being part of his plans.

“I am honest, I am clear and I front up.” he said. “We would need to get one sort of agreement. Do you think that you are going to work with someone who doesn’t want to work with you that things are going to be nice or going to be the right way? I don’t think so. It is a question of principles and values.”

Meanwhile, Partick Thistle’s Liam Lindsay has admitted he is dreaming of pulling on the dark blue of Scotland, after his inclusion in the PFA Scotland team of the year sent the online campaign for him to receive a call-up into overdrive.

The big defender was overjoyed to be the only player not currently playing with Celtic or Aberdeen to be voted into this season’s best eleven by his peers.

Lindsay isn’t downhearted that he has yet to receive a call from Gordon Strachan. Remarkably, he was never even capped at under-21 level. But having only turned 21 earlier this season, he knows that time is on his side if he is to fulfil his dream of representing his country.

"It's not a disappointment that I haven't been involved,” said Lindsay. “I just see it as a compliment that people think I should be in the Scotland squad.

"I know that getting in the team of the year means that I will get more Twitter tags about it. As soon it got announced, it went a bit mad with fans talking about it. Of course, I'd love to be in it though. It's a dream to play for Scotland.

"I never got a call up for the younger age groups. I don't know why. Was it down to playing with a smaller club? Maybe. We didn't really get recognition but we should now.

"The team has been brilliant and that has really helped me. We have put in some really good performances and I'm loving my football.

“I was delighted to be named in the team of the year and it's the biggest compliment I can get, as it's voted for by the players you face every week.

"I honestly didn't expect it. I thought the whole team would be made up of Celtic and Aberdeen players, so it was a brilliant surprise. I am the only one outwith those clubs to be included and I can't put into words what that means.”