MARK WARBURTON admits Rangers are still ‘one or two’ players short as he bids to bolster his Ibrox ranks this summer.

The new Light Blues boss has made seven signings ahead of his first campaign in charge and still hopes to clinch a deal to capture Hibernian star Scott Allan.

The Easter Road board have turned down two approaches for Allan so far, but Rangers are likely to go back to the table in a bid to strike a deal.

Warburton saw his side lose 1-0 to Burnley on Tuesday night in their final warm-up fixture ahead of their Petrofac Training Cup clash against Hibs this afternoon.

And the Gers boss hopes there will be more new arrivals to supplement his squad before the end of the transfer window.

Warburton said: “It’s a balance. We have a good academy here, a really good academy, good players coming through, so we want to give them a pathway and also at the same time allow some very talented young players to get the vital experience to prepare them for playing here in the first team.

“But at the same time I think we are still maybe one or two short of where we want to be.

“But the squad right now, I think you saw on Tuesday, we have some good players.

“Jordan Thompson at 18 and Tom Walsh, Fraser Aird came on, Kenny Miller, a more senior member, came on and made a really good impression.

“The squad is taking good shape quickly and we are trying to bed some players in.”

After completing a deal for former Hearts star Jason Holt earlier this week, it is Allan who is next on Warburton’s shopping list this summer.

Rangers are likely to have to improve on the £225,000 offer that is currently on the table if they are to tempt Hibs into doing business and sign Alan Stubbs’ key player.

Warburton said: “He’s not my player. He’s a Hibs player.

“I think if anyone was talking about one of my players I would be more than irate. So it’s not for me to talk about another club’s player.

“I know Alan, I worked with Alan at Everton in the NextGen tournament so I know Alan very well.

“The club made a bid so there is obviously interest, there is always interest in a club like Rangers in improving the quality of the squad.

“Alan made their stance very clear to me and I respectfully said he’s not my player, he’s your player, so I won’t be talking about one of your playing staff, which I never have done and never will do.”

While Allan remains a key target for Rangers as Warburton looks for further reinforcements this summer, the Ibrox boss is also running the rule over midfielder John Eustace.

The former Derby star has spent the last couple of weeks with the Gers squad as he looks to win a deal with the Light Blues.

Warburton said: “John is training really well. He’s making good progress and he is looking to come back to squad training in a few days’ time.

“When he has done that, it’s another hurdle overcome and we’ll see how he does in the next short period.”

With most of his summer shopping spree completed, Warburton is now just looking for the finishing touches to add further quality to his Ibrox squad.

All seven of his recruits – Wes Foderingham, James Tavernier, Danny Wilson, Rob Kiernan, Andy Halliday, Martyn Waghorn and Holt – have been permanent deals as he has taken a long-term view to the rebuilding job.

But the Gers boss could also look to utilise the loan market for the finishing touches in the coming weeks.

He said: “There will possibly be a couple of loan deals but it’s about what represents value for us.

“Loans we did at Brentford eventually became permanent deals. If that’s something we can do, we will look to develop relationships with the selling clubs.”