Warburton backs Hill in derby heat

MARK Warburton will have no hesitation about pitching the veteran Clint Hill into the heat of an Old Firm duel against Moussa Dembele today.

Hill turned 38 last week, while Dembele’s pace and power has posed threats to some of the most vaunted defences in Europe, but Warburton sees parallels between Hill and his assistant manager David Weir, who played on at the highest level until he reached 40.

The Ibrox side have struggled for continuity at centre-back this season and Danny Wilson is a prematch doubt with a quad strain.

“Do I have concerns?” said Warburton. “No. Just watch Clint. Like Kenny Miller, he is still playing at this age for a reason. He looks after himself so well.

“We did a really tough fitness test just before the international break and I watched him finish in the middle of the squad. He was beating players who are 10, 12, 14 years younger than him.

“Stewart Robertson [the chief executive] tells a story about getting a cab in London for a meeting recently,” added the Rangers manager, who is also without injured midfielder Niko Kranjcar. “The driver got talking about football and he was a QPR fan. He said to Stewart: ‘All I wish for is a team of 11 Clint Hills.’ I know the Rangers fans sing the song about ‘a team of Davie Weirs’, and that’s the similarity.

“Clint has been given a chance, he’s taken it and he’s a top-class pro. Ideally, you want a defender with great aerial ability at 6ft 4in, a great physique, who can pass the ball with both feet and run like Usain Bolt. The fact is those guys are in the English Premier League. What Clint has is a strong aerial ability, he can deal with a physical presence and has experience. His positioning is excellent. Clint won’t turn round and say he’s the quickest centre-half in the league, but I have no worries about him whatsoever.”