IT has been the most important month of Pedro Caixinha’s Rangers career and now only seven days remain on the countdown clock. After a handful of bounce games, a couple of friendlies and one European tie, just 90 minutes stand between Caixinha’s side and the new Premiership campaign.

They will be played against Sheffield Wednesday this afternoon as the blueprint for the trip to Fir Park next weekend is finalised. In many ways, it can’t come quickly enough for a manager and group of players that have points to prove and plenty to earn in the coming weeks.

Rangers’ summer schedule was thrown into disarray after they tumbled out of the Europa League. The preparation for Progres Niederkorn was far from perfect, and the build-up to the Premiership hasn’t been what anyone at Ibrox had hoped for. With matches against Marseille and Watford now under their belts and the game against Carlos Carvalhal’s side to come, Rangers have at least made the most out of a bad situation.

The fall-out from the defeat to Progres may have subsided but Caixinha is still in the blast zone. His reputation was undoubtedly damaged, irreparably in the eyes of some supporters, following that humiliating night in Luxembourg and the road to recovery is a long one for the Portuguese.

The first steps were taken last weekend as Rangers produced an accomplished performance to earn a draw with Marseille at Ibrox. The fact that the French giants were preparing for their own Europa League outing – they beat Oostende 4-2 on Thursday evening – made the showing all the more encouraging for Caixinha and a critical home crowd.

It was the first time that Rangers had been seen in public since they trudged off, defeated and demoralised, in the Stade Josy Barthel three weeks previously. That night hasn’t been forgotten and won’t be forgiven, but the meeting with Marseille at least gave supporters a reason to be optimistic once again, if only a little.

Caixinha handed Bruno Alves and Graham Dorrans their debuts at Ibrox, while there was a first start for Eduardo Herrera as he joined Kenny Miller up front. The switch to a 4-4-2 formation paid dividends for Rangers and perhaps provided an insight into what can be expected when this new-look side stride out against Motherwell next Sunday.

There was still a lack of cutting edge to much of Rangers’ play but there was a more solid look to the team as Portuguese pair Alves and Fabio Cardoso played together for the first time. In the middle of the park, Ryan Jack was industrious and combative, and while Dorrans wasn’t a stand-out on his debut there should be few worries about what he will bring to the team.

Those partnerships, like the one between Miller and Herrera, were retained when Rangers beat Watford in midweek, with Daniel Candeias and Martyn Waghorn on target. Caixinha spoke positively about the performance afterwards and saw the behind closed doors game as a step forward for his side. Now he needs the Gers to take another at Hillsborough.

It would be no surprise if the two changes that Caixinha made for the meeting with Marco Silva’s side – as Jak Alnwick replaced goalkeeper Wes Foderingham and Josh Windass took over from Niko Kranjcar in midfield - are reversed this afternoon. It is Caixinha’s last chance to tinker and tweak, but it would make sense to use the Owls test as a dry-run for the top flight opener.

The 4-4-2 setup is the one that Rangers feel ‘most confident in’ according to Caixinha and the system that ‘best suits the characteristics’ of his squad’. Having spent the final weeks of last term trying out a range of approaches, with significantly contrasting results, the lightbulb moment has come at just the right time for the 46-year-old.

There is, of course, still plenty of room for improvement, though. The spine of the team from Foderingham to Miller seems to pick itself, although the space alongside the 38-year-old is still up for grabs. Neither Herrera nor Alfredo Morelos, the Colombian forward signed from HJK, have nailed down that position just yet, while Waghorn’s efforts and attitude have earned him a reprieve from the summer clearout.

It was Candeias and Kranjcar that started in the wide areas last weekend and both impressed as they offered very different threats. The Portuguese was direct down the right, but his final ball could have been better. He was bright, though, and the partnership with James Tavernier will improve with time.

On the other side, Kranjcar often drifted in to find pockets of space, leaving the left wing clear for Lee Wallace to exploit. The Croatian’s natural ability is clear, but his lack of movement need to be accounted for. If Caixinha can find a way to get the best out of Kranjcar and still get what he needs out of his team, then the 32-year-old can belatedly become an integral part of the Ibrox plan.

Only time will tell what Carlos Pena, the Mexican midfielder, and winger Dalcio will bring to the table this term but those that have had the jerseys in the last two matches, and are likely to retain them this afternoon, are surely in pole position for a spot in seven days time.

Having got their campaign off to a false start in Luxembourg, Rangers must hit top gear in Lanarkshire. The last month has been a steep learning curve for Caixinha, now he must put the theory into practice.