Pedro Caixinha close to appointing new assistant
Pedro Caixinha hopes to wrap up his search for a new assistant this week - because he is desperate to get back to work reshaping Rangers.
Pedro Caixinha hopes to wrap up his search for a new assistant this week - because he is desperate to get back to work reshaping Rangers.
The new Ibrox manager wants to add someone with a local perspective to his backroom staff and has spent recent days interviewing coaching candidates.
But the Portuguese is keen to see the process completed swiftly so he can get back to more pressing matters, namely ensuring Gers are in as good a shape as possible as they look to bridge the eight-point gap separating them from second-placed Aberdeen.
Caixinha believes firmly in taking a hands-on approach and reckons every minute he wastes dealing with off-field matters is one he could have spent guiding his players.
"I'm the first one to give the example,'' he explained ahead of Saturday's Ladbrokes Premiership clash with Motherwell at Ibrox. "I am here from 7am to 7pm but sometimes I would like the day to have 48 hours because I need to be everywhere.
"That's the management style in British football but I do believe that you have to be with the players as much as you can.
"This is about players and about relationships. Training is of a fundamental importance when it comes to the matches.
"If I am not there, the players are not going to perform the same way. There have been studies carried out which show exercises led by the first-team coach and the manager are totally different exercises, because the stimulations are different and so are the adaptations.
"So I need to be present. The new assistant coach also needs to be with us on the training field and have the same philosophy as the rest of the coaching staff.
"He needs to know Scottish football and also needs to know how to relate to the players. That's what I'm looking for.''
Former Light Blues servants Barry Ferguson, Alex Rae, John Brown, Peter Lovenkrands and Jonatan Johansson are among those to have met the former Al-Gharafa boss.
And Caixinha says he is close to naming the man he wants to work with.
He said: "We are still assessing but we're getting to the end, thank God. It's been a long two weeks getting here.
"It's not easy when you need to sit in front of someone and get to know him, especially when you only have an hour or so to assess all the points you need to make your decision.
"We're about to conclude the process and I hope to have the decision made by the end of this week.''
The 46-year-old also said he hopes to be able to tell out-of-contract veterans Kenny Miller and Clint Hill if they will receive new deals "sooner rather than later''.
Caixinha also revealed he has held talks with the parents of Billy Gilmour in a bid to convince the Ibrox wonderkid to remain with Gers.
Chelsea have struck a £350,000 fee with Light Blues bosses ahead of a potential switch this summer but have yet to finalise the 15-year-old's move to London.
Now Caixinha hopes he can persuade the talented youngster to stay put.
"Billy is not only going to have a bright future in this club but he's going to have a bright future in football,'' said the Light Blues boss, who has already invited the Scotland Under-15 captain to train with his top team.
"He is a bright kid - I call him Billy the Kid because of his age - and a clever kid for me is someone who anticipates everything that is going on before all the others.
"Now we have a situation with the club that he belongs to, with us, and a family situation.
"So we need to deal with it and to do that we have held a meeting with his parents. I won't share what was said at this moment but I did explain my point of view.
"I do believe that for Billy, the family ourselves or even Chelsea or another club later in the future to receive a player on another level, better ready to go on this adventure, it is better for him to stay here.''