Gerrard needs more from those he signed in the summer but reinforcements are required

stronger than any that his predecessors were able to assemble. The Gers boss doesn’t have a perfect strike rate in the transfer market but there were always going to be errors of judgement made as he sanctioned moves for the first time.

When the window closed earlier this year, the improvement was clear to see but the feelings and fears that Rangers were still short of quality have been realised.

It became evident almost immediately that Umar Sadiq wasn’t going to provide adequate support to Alfredo Morelos, while Ovie Ejaria never looked capable of being the creative spark in the middle of park.

That lack of a playmaker to carve teams open and someone else to put the ball in the net has undoubtedly cost Rangers crucial points

this term and

‘‘

no matter how the year ends against Hibernian and Celtic, they will be left with feelings of what might have been as the winter break begins.

As the Premiership shuts down, the transfer rumour mill will start to speed up once again and supporters will anxiously wait to see what business Rangers do next month.

A move for Steven Davis would make perfect sense and the Northern Irishman still has the class and quality required to make a difference in the top flight.

But it is the deal to bring a striker to Ibrox that could really give supporters hope that Rangers can challenge for Premiership and Scottish Cup silverware in the coming months.

Dominic Solanke continues to be linked with a switch that would reunite him with Gerrard but the Gers boss has repeatedly played down that prospect in public.

Premier League interest could prove prohibitive to any potential move but a forward player will be brought on board to give Rangers added firepower for the run-in and to take some of the burden off Morelos.

Gerrard needs more from some of those he signed in the summer but reinforcements are undoubtedly required as the wage bill gets set to increase once again.

Like it was in the summer, that is a necessity for Rangers right now.

Come the end of the campaign, the focus can shift again to offloading those who are of no use or value to either Gerrard or Rangers. January is about looking forward rather than back, though.

The task of building a titlewinning team in the space of one transfer window is almost impossible. It takes time for such sides to be assembled and fine-tuned.

But if Gerrard can have a successful January, he will surely be confident that Rangers will be in the mix for medals come May.

The rebuilding work is far from complete. The next stage will prove to be crucial for Rangers.