A FORMER Rangers business advisor today warned the Ibrox club won't recover fully from years of corporate vandalism until they qualify for the Champions League - or quit Scottish football.

The Glasgow giants revealed they had made a loss of £2.89 million after tax in the second six months of 2014 when they released their interim financial results on Tuesday.

The half-yearly figures were, despite being an improvement on the accounts posted during the catastrophic reign of previous regimes, described as "disappointing" by interim chairman Paul Murray.

Murray and his fellow directors, who took over at the EGM called by major shareholder Dave King last month, are working to get the SPFL Championship club back on a firm financial footing.

They have agreed a £1.5 million interest-free loan with the members of the Three Bears consortium - George Letham, Douglas Park and George Taylor - for short-term working capital.

And, in his statement in the interim results, Murray confirmed that existing and new investors had been lined up to plough more money in as part of their medium and long-term funding plans.

Yet, David Bick, the chairman of Square 1 Consulting and a football club takeover specialist, is adamant Rangers need to explore other options to recapture their former glories and fulfil their enormous potential in the future.

Bick advised a senior official after Rangers were placed into the Third Division back in 2012 - but they were both helpless to prevent the Ibrox club haemorrhaging millions of pounds and going into financial freefall.

He said: "I was asked by a friend of mine to help. He was a very straight chap and well respected in the City. I told him: 'You've got to get these guys out!' The only person I spoke to at Rangers who I had any time for at all was the manager, Ally McCoist. The rest of them? Dear oh dear!"

Financial expert Bick, though, believes the figures released this week are encouraging and feels with significant investment by King, Letham, Park , Taylor and others Rangers can put their off-field troubles behind them.

He said: "The interim results aren't that bad. A loss of £2.6 million isn't bad at all. In fact, it shows that in the last six months of last year the club was probably being run fairly prudently.

"But the club needs serious investment - and to be run by some straight people. They raised over £22 million at a share offering in November of 2012. That should have done the job. But, sadly, that has been tossed away.

"Rangers need the right set of people in charge as well as investment. The supporters are behind the new regime and this is positive. But my question would be: 'Do they really have the money to do the job?'

"Somebody needs to keep putting money in to keep it going. I imagine this crowd that has come in can keep it going. But can they do much more than that? Do they have sufficient funds to make this club motor again?

"Over the last 20 years I have heard a lot of people say they will put money into a football club. When push came to shove, not all of them have. But this regime has said they will put money in - and if they do then they could be looking at the sun rising again."

The interim results showed that only 24,589 Rangers supporters - a drop of over 10,000 - had bought season tickets by the end of last year due to widespread unhappiness at the running of the Ibrox club.

Bick predicted that the majority of the fans getting firmly behind the new regime will increase that number significantly and help alleviate the financial problems the Govan institution has wrestled with for years.

"I can remember coming up to Ibrox for a game against Elgin when Rangers were in the Third Division a couple of years ago," he said.

"It was a freezing cold afternoon in January - and over 46,000 fans turned up to watch their team get held to a 1-1 draw by part time opponents! That drove home to me how loyal and devoted Rangers fans are.

"If they are backing the new regime they should come flooding back. Season tickets sales are an important source of revenue and that will help. But going forward it won't cut the mustard or make a huge difference."

Sports Direct tycoon Mike Ashley, who owns nearly 9 per cent of Rangers, has security over Albion Car Park, Edmiston House and Murray Park as well as the registered trademarks after loaning them £5 million earlier this year.

However, Bick is confident the influence of Newcastle United owner Ashley, who also received a further 26 per cent of their retail operation in return for his loan, won't hinder Rangers

He said: "I don't think Mike wants to own or run Rangers. His only interest is in selling his shirts and his shoes. I'm not sure that's where the focus of attention should be for the new people in charge."

Murray revealed the new Rangers regime has set itself a target of 2022 - their 150th anniversary - to be make the Ibrox club the dominant force in this country once again and be competing annually in Europe.

Bick feels the gulf between Scottish and English football - which widened when the Premier League agreed an eye-watering £5.136 billion television rights deal with Sky and BT - mean they could have to look further afield to progress in time.

He said: "Rangers need to get back into the Premiership, win it and get into the Champions League. Qualifying for the group stages of that competition will bring in £15 million. Clubs get more for making the group stages than they do in the knockout rounds.

"At the moment, the net worth of the club is almost the same as the stadium and the training ground. The club is only turning over £13 million which is next to nothing. With their fan base, they should be turning over £100 million.

"You can't run a top flight club these days on the numbers. The disparity with the Premier League in England is now enormous. Yes, Rangers needs serious investment. Yes, Rangers needs to get back up into the Premiership. But Rangers is going nowhere. If they are confined to Scottish football are they able to make a case for serious investment?"