Weir fears 2016 semi-final win led

● Former Rangers No 2 acknowledges that Ibrox side were still a work in progress and Rodgers then took Celtic to another level

minutes of the Scottish Cup final against Hibs to bring the curtain down on his first season at Warburton’s side.

Rangers subsequent inability to suggest they could finish a strong second to Celtic in the Premiership meant Weir and Warburton didn’t even see out a second season.

Their acrimonious departure was wrapped in claim and counter-claim between Warburton and Rangers chairman Dave King over the circumstances of the parting.

And Weir acknowledges that his time on the coaching staff, which followed a medal-laden six years as an Ibrox player, elicits a mixture of pride and frustration.

The 47-year-old said: “You want to go to Rangers and be there for a long time and be successful.

“I will argue with anyone that we were successful at Rangers. When we came to the club, we had nine players, the club had finished third in the Championship and there was a lot of work to be done.

“We wanted to build a team to take Rangers into the Premiership and a lot of work went into that.

“We were on the right route getting Rangers back to where we wanted to be. But the next season was more difficult back in the Premiership. There were obstacles in our way, some things did not work out the way we had hoped and we had to readjust as we were going.”

Weir is currently out of the game after an ill-fated ninemonth