Rangers could turn to Senderos after missing out on Lescott

Rangers manager Mark Warburton could turn to Philippe Senderos in his search for a fourth centre-back after Joleon Lescott's Ibrox move fell through.

Warburton had expressed optimism on Thursday over the chance of signing Lescott, and the Aston Villa defender subsequently visited Glasgow.

But the move collapsed on Friday morning, with Rangers citing family reasons as the reason Lescott will not be signing for the club.

Villa owner Tony Xia had confirmed his club would pay a portion of Lescott's wages on the final year of his contract, but Sunderland have also been linked with the 34-year-old.

Rangers are still on course to sign Preston striker Joe Garner in a #1.5million deal, but it is unlikely to be completed before Saturday's Ladbrokes Premiership clash with Motherwell.

And they have another option to complete their summer transfer business in Senderos. The 31-year-old former Arsenal defender is a free agent and has been training with the club this week.

Warburton spoke of the former Fulham and Villa player, who had a short spell with Grasshoppers earlier this year, as a serious option on Thursday.

"I can't speak highly enough of Philippe Senderos,'' Warburton said. He hadn't been training with a team for a few weeks but his level of fitness is outstanding. His CV is well documented but his level of fitness and the way he has fitted into the group has been first class. He has dealt with training all week effortlessly.

"We have to look at a number of options and I've been very, very impressed by Philippe. Obviously he won't be involved at the weekend. He is going back to Geneva for a couple of days, but we are very pleased with what we have seen.

"But, again, we have to make sure we look at all our options and treat people the right way as well. Players want honest feedback and we will always do that to the players. That leaves us in good stead if we do it that way."