The dream XI Rangers could build under McInnes

Football is a funny game. Situations can change in an instant and Glasgow Rangers supporters have felt the full effect of that in the past seven days.

Danny Rohl seemed secure in his position as head coach of the Gers a week ago. Now, the German boss is set to join RB Salzburg to take over the Austrian Bundesliga side.

Derek McInnes has agreed a three-year contract to leave Hearts and join the Light Blues as their replacement for the ex-Sheffield Wednesday boss, after he led his side to second in the Scottish Premiership.

After putting together a dream XI that the club could have built for Rohl, the Gers may change their summer plans now that they have a new manager with different tactics and possibly different players that he wants to sign.

The goalkeeper and defence

Pierce Charles and Hampus Skoglund were suggested as possible signings for the Light Blues under the German boss, but there are two Scottish options that could come in under their new Scottish manager.

Jack Butland’s future is up in the air, with 12 months left on his contract, and Angus Gunn has just been released by Nottingham Forest, which could make him an attractive target for the club, after keeping a clean sheet for Scotland against Haiti at the World Cup.

The club were recently linked with an interest in a deal to bring Nathan Patterson back to Ibrox for a second spell, and he could form part of a strong Scottish core at the back for McInnes as a potential loan signing.

That would be on top of a possible £2m deal to sign reported target Luke Graham from Dundee to partner Emmanuel Fernandez in the centre-back positions, with Tuur Rommens keeping his spot at left-back.

These moves could create a back five that includes three Scottish players in Gunn, Graham, and Patterson, whilst only spending £2m on permanent transfer fees.

The midfield

Instead of a 4-2-2-2 formation under Rohl, McInnes could look to use the more standard 4-4-2 that he deployed at Hearts, although he did also use a 4-3-1-2 at times.

In this 4-4-2, the Gers would have two central midfielders and two wingers either side to push up and down the flank to create chances, rather than having the two wide players come in centrally as they did for the German boss.

Cammy Devlin looks set to become a free agent when his contract at Hearts expires at the end of this month and he could be the perfect replacement for Nicolas Raskin, who is expected to attract offers this summer.

The Australian star, who has not been officially linked with a move to the club, would be the ideal replacement for the Belgian because they are both incredibly combative midfielders.

Whilst Devlin could partner January signing Tochi Chukwuani in the middle of the park, the Gers also need to bring in a new right winger after Mikey Moore returned to Spurs and Andreas Skov Olsen returned to Wolfsburg.

It was recently reported that the Gers are interested in signing Vaclav Cerny from Besiktas, who joined the Turkish team for £6m from Wolfsburg last summer after his loan stint at Ibrox.

The Czechia international produced 18 goals and six assists in the Premiership and Europa League combined during the 2024/25 campaign on loan at Rangers, and could be a fantastic addition to the squad if they can get him for around the £6m that Besiktas paid.

The attack

With Djeidi Gassama keeping his place on one of the flanks and Cerny joining him on the other, all that is left to complete this dream XI for McInnes is the two centre-forwards.

Lawrence Shankland will take up one of the two positions because the club had already signed him from Hearts earlier this summer, after he scored 16 goals for McInnes at Tynecastle in the 2025/26 Premiership campaign.

The Scotland international and Devlin may not be the only players who link up with the incoming Gers boss, though, as he is reportedly hoping to bring Claudio Braga with him to Ibrox.

Hearts are said to value the Portuguese striker at up to £10m, which means that the Light Blues will have to splash the cash to land his services this summer.

They could justify spending £10m on Braga by cashing in on Youssef Chermiti, who is reportedly valued at £25m amid interest from Turkish giants Besiktas.

Braga and Shankland scored 30 goals between them as a front two for McInnes in the Premiership this season, and would be the perfect duo to lead the manager into his era at Ibrox next term.

This dream line-up under the Scottish boss would have a nice blend of proven Premiership and Scottish talent, along with top-quality players from abroad.

They could also land the six new signings proposed here for a combined fee of £18m, with £10m for Braga, £6m for Cerny, and £2m for Graham, along with a loan for Patterson and free transfers for Gunn and Devlin.