ABERDEEN boss Derek McInnes was today tipped to spurn the potential advances of his former club Rangers and complete his rebuilding job at Pittodrie.

 

McInnes is one of the red-hot favourites to be appointed Gers manager as a result of his success with the Dons in the last two seasons.

The ex-midfielder, who spent five years at the Light Blues during the Nine-In-A-Row and Dick Advocaat eras, lead Aberdeen to League Cup glory last season.

And the 43-year-old's side pushed Celtic all the way in the race for the SPFL Premiership title during the 2014/15 campaign.

The former St. Johnstone and Bristol City gaffer is believed to be ahead of Stuart McCall on the shortlist for the Rangers job after the play-off final defeat.

But Dons and Scotland defender Mark Reynolds reckons McInnes, who is contracted to Pittodrie until 2017, will want to remain where he is for the foreseeable future.

He said: "He is looking to build something and I think it would be hard for him to walk away from what he has started and not be there to reap the rewards of the groundwork he has put in.

"He has tied all of his players up to long-term deals and he himself has committed to a new long-term contract as well.

"We all know long-term contracts don't really mean much in football. If a big team comes in with big money then people can move.

"But he's certainly laid the foundations and I think it would be hard for him to walk away from that."

Reynolds added: "We won the cup in his first season, pushed Celtic right into May in the league this season and we have strengthened again for next season.

"There is no reason we can't push on in the league and do well in the cups as well."

The 6-1 thrashing Rangers suffered over two legs at the hands of Motherwell in the play-off final has damaged interim manager McCall's chances of getting appointed on a full-time basis.

But Reynolds believes McCall, who yesterday joined up with the Scotland squad for the double header against Qatar and the Republic of Ireland, is still the best man for the Gers job.

He said: "He did a great job. Everybody is saying he fell short because the ultimate job was to get them back up, but he steadied the ship and got them playing nice football.

"But that is all he could have done given the restrictions that were placed on him. I think he proved again that he is one of the top managers in Scotland and is more than capable of doing a job like that."

Reynolds continued: "It's great having Stuart about the Scotland set-up. Everyone gets on great with the coaching staff here and they all contribute different aspects.

"I only worked with Stuart very briefly when I was at Motherwell, but I really enjoyed it. He is a great guy and a great coach.

"I think the manager (Scotland boss Gordon Strachan) recognised that at the start and that is why he brought him on board. I am sure he is happy to call on his experience and expertise as much as he can.

"They are all hands on. Mark (McGhee), Stuart and Jim (Stewart) the goalkeeping coach all contribute towards it. They all give different ideas."