CAIXINHA SET TO BE GERS MAN
From Back Page last night – and going down to a 3-2 injury-time defeat to rivals Al-Sailiya.
But with the Q League now set to shut down for a month, the 46-year-old believes the time is right for him to travel to Scotland and hopes to have his situation clarified in the next 48 hours.
Caixinha hopes to be given five or six days to work with the squad before leading them on a daunting trip to Parkhead next Sunday.
Record Sport can also reveal the Ibrox club are locked in talks with Southampton’s Ross Wilson over the role of director of football.
And Rangers are hopeful the 34-year-old will give them an answer over the next 48 hours.
While it’s not at all certain that Wilson will be willing to give up his lofty position as head of recruitment at St Mary’s, Caixinha appears determined to have his appointment as the club’s 16th manager rubber-stamped as quickly as possible.
He is already believed to be considering the make-up of his backroom team and has a history of using local back-up at his previous clubs.
It’s believed the club could appoint an assistant with a Scottish background.
A source close to the deal said last night: “Caixinha had to focus on the game against Al-Sailiya but now his attention is on getting to Glasgow as quickly as possible.
“If Rangers make a reasonable offer as quickly as possible then he believes Al-Gharafa will not stand in his way. He will lose a lot of Euros by ending his contract early but that is not his priority right now.
“His priority is to get to work in Glasgow as quickly as possible and to prepare the team for the game against Celtic.
“Ideally he would like to fly to Scotland on Monday but even if he does not arrive until Tuesday at least he still has a few days to get to know the players.
“Pedro hopes to be there as quickly as possible but it just depends on how quickly Rangers want to move.”
Last night, Caixinha was staying tight-lipped on the move as negotiations continued between his representatives and the club. He said: “I am still the coach of Al-Gharafa and I respect my contractual obligations with the club.