DAYS of speculation about whether Steven Gerrard would accept the offer to become Rangers manager may well have been brought to an end yesterday when his appointment was finally confirmed. But the uncertainty over what the future holds for the Ibrox club remains. In fact, what lies ahead is as unclear now as it has ever been at any stage in their troubled recent past.

Gerrard had asked for assurances over the budget he would receive to strengthen the squad after holding what he described on BT Sport on Tuesday evening as “positive talks and signed a three year deal after receiving them.

It is reasonable to speculate the former England and Liverpool midfielder has been told significant funds will be made available. Why else would he have agreed to join? He is certainly not going to bring success and silverware back to Govan working with the current group of players. But if he has been told he will get cash to spend where exactly is it going to come from?

The rumour mill has predictably gone into overdrive since it emerged that Gerrard had been targeted. Speculation is rife that potential foreign backers had demanded a high-profile figure who is renowned across the world be appointed before they ploughed their money in.

Directors Paul Murray and Barry Scott resigned on Wednesday, it has been suggested, in order to free up space on the board for the new partners to put in their representatives.

Another theory is that bringing in Gerrard will make it easier for the Rangers hierarchy to attract much-needed additional external investors.

But both of those hypotheses centre around one thing; that more money needs to be brought in. With good reason. The current business model – affluent fans offsetting the losses with soft loans which will later be converted into equity – was declared “unsustainable in the long-term” two years ago by major shareholder Dave King.

The renegotiation of the Sports Direct retail agreement – one of the most significant developments in the protracted and ongoing recovery of Rangers – last year will generate far greater income from the sale of replica strips and other official merchandise.

Bringing in Gerrard, too, should ensure a healthy uptake of season ticket books in the summer even among those among the fanbase who are opposed to his appointment.

But will that, coupled with the ongoing support of King, George Letham, Douglas Park, George Taylor and others, really be enough? King was adamant yesterday it will be.

Preparations for the 2018/19 campaign are certainly well underway. The recruitment is sure to be a vast improvement on what has gone before under director of football Mark Allen and his team.

But how are Rangers in a position to do more business in the transfer market? Bruno Alves, Fabio Cardoso, Carlos Pena, Eduardo Herrera, players whose contribution since being signed by Pedro Caixinha in a catastrophic signing spree last summer has been negligible if not non-existent, are still on the wage bill. Between them, they are banking just shy of £100,000 a week.

How can Rangers bring new recruits in without getting rid of the dead wood? Offloading them won’t easy. Why would they go on those salaries? Who would offer them the same level of remuneration? There will be few takers.

Then there is the ongoing saga with King and the Takeover Panel. If that is not resolved satisfactorily – and his failure to date to make a £11 million bid for 70 per cent of the Ibrox club’s shares has done little to suggest it will be – he will face inevitable sanctions.

The most severe of those would see him being “cold shouldered”. That would effectively mean that no bank, institution or adviser regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority could act on his behalf and would surely render his position as chairman untenable.

The Passing of Resolution 11 at the AGM in December paved the way for a share offering that would enable Rangers to bring in fresh capital. But will having a figurehead who is persona not grata in the city jeopardise that?

The Glasgow-born South African-based businessman has stated in the past that his investment was dependent on him being chairman. He has ploughed in by far the most money, over £7 million, of anyone since the current regime seized power three years and a month ago. For all his flaws and foibles, can Rangers live without his benevolence?

Fans are understandably excited at a big name like Steven Gerrard rocking up in Govan. But they need answers about how it is going to be paid for. King will address all of these issues and more at another press conference early next week. It will make for interesting listening.