Rangers manager Michael Beale will want to make wholesale changes to his squad, believes Barry Ferguson.

The Lowdown: Rangers under Beale

Beale has begun life at Rangers brilliantly with 13 points from a possible 15 following their 2-2 draw in the Old Firm derby.

After just two wins in five SPFL games before the World Cup break, Giovanni van Bronckhorst was sacked and replaced by Beale, who has righted the Gers’ form and overseen them put in a gallant performance against Celtic.

The Latest: Shaping his squad

Despite the unbeaten start, former Rangers captain Ferguson said on The Go Radio Football Show that the new boss will want to shape his team as quickly as possible to take the club back to the summit of Scottish football, after their draw against the Bhoys proved they’re heading in the right direction.

He said: “At least Rangers showed me something in the second half, they showed a real appetite, a real desire, a real togetherness.

“And I'm sure Michael Beale will be happy going forward. But he still knows that there does need to be some changes within that squad, a bit of personnel changes; there will be some going, there will be some coming in.”

 

The Verdict: Important deals to be done

With Rangers nine points off the league leaders, who’ve only dropped four points all season such has been their imperious form, there’s only so much that team togetherness can close the gap.

There will undoubtedly be a busy Rangers rumour mill in the January window with the Englishman looking to build his side, but a more realistic time to do so will be the summer window, with more players available and the extra six months giving Beale more time to ponder the next steps over players' futures and potential incomings at Ibrox.

There are also big questions over the key futures of Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent and loanee Malik Tillman, who are all set to depart Glasgow at the end of the season as it stands.