CASH is king at Ibrox. Rangers need more of it and Mark Warburton wants more of it.

How much the board can generate and how much the manager is given to spend will shape where Rangers are heading on and off the park not just in the next few months but in the coming years.

Warburton and chairman Dave King sat side-by-side at Friday’s AGM as a few hundred supporters and shareholders gathered to get the latest progress report on the Ibrox rebuilding job.

It was the board meeting the previous day that would have been the most enlightening, however, as the strategy, from both a business and football perspective, was planned.

Read more: Partick Thistle 1-2 Rangers: Mark Warburton's side avoid Firhill boos but must do better if there is to be festive cheer at Ibrox

In a financial sense, the picture will become clearer today when the results of the AGM votes are confirmed.

The board will soon get the ball rolling on the next wave of cash sourcing at Ibrox and it is likely to be the same familiar faces that are footing the bill this time around.

While Rangers are hamstrung by the Sports Direct deal and revenue from their retail division remains as low, there is a requirement for the likes of King, Douglas Park, George Letham and George Taylor to put their money on the table.

Many continue to question King’s famous conjecture about £30million being required but that cash was never going to be utilised in a lump sum, and it certainly wasn’t going to be solely spent on players.

Read more: Partick Thistle 1-2 Rangers: Mark Warburton's side avoid Firhill boos but must do better if there is to be festive cheer at Ibrox

Work has been carried out at Ibrox and Auchenhowie to bring both back up to scratch after periods of neglect under previous regimes, while the cost of fighting Mike Ashley continues to rise as further court action looms large on the horizon.

It is on the park that supporters want to see the cash being splashed, though, and time will tell how much Warburton is given to further bolster his Light Blue ranks.

The 54-year-old has pointed out the disparity between the budgetary restraints that he is working under and the funds available to Celtic counterpart Brendan Rodgers. For now, Rangers will have to speculate to accumulate if the gap to their Old Firm rivals is to close.

But it is not all about the bottom line and Rangers have not got value for money when you consider the returns for the outlays, and that is why Warburton must get his next deals right when he is trusted with a January transfer kitty.

He has not spent large sums compared to his predecessors but the fees of £1.8million for Joe Garner, £500,000 for Michael O’Halloran and £250,000 respectively for Jordan Rossiter and Joe Dodoo are beyond what his other Premiership counterparts could afford.

And there are no clubs, other than Celtic, that could have brought the likes of Joey Barton, Niko Kranjcar or Clint Hill on board this summer.

King acknowledged on Friday that the summer recruitment drive hadn’t been as successful as hoped and that he expected Warburton’s side to be faring better this season.

The Gers may be up to second in the Premiership but sitting eight points adrift of Celtic, having played two games more, does not constitute being highly competitive in the top flight.

If it is accepted that Celtic should be clear given their financial muscle then the same should apply to Rangers and the rest of the pack. Too often this term, the gap on the field hasn’t been as wide as the balance sheets should suggest.

Read more: Partick Thistle 1-2 Rangers: Mark Warburton's side avoid Firhill boos but must do better if there is to be festive cheer at Ibrox

Money will be made available for Warburton in the next window and the arrivals of more reinforcements should be enough to give Rangers the edge in the battle to be best of the rest.

But the Ibrox board and crowd will demand results and progress to prove that Warburton’s side are on the right track and are capable of making an impression in Europe next term and challenging for the Premiership title.

If not, that would leave many questioning what Warburton should be given in the summer for another foray into the market. Some may even ponder whether he is still the man who should have access to the chequebook.