Hill would be great at Ibrox, says Warnock

NEIL WARNOCK insists Clint Hill is the man to inject a rod of iron into the Rangers defence. The 37-year-old centre-half is in talks with the Ibrox club over a one-year deal after quitting QPR at the end of last season. And Warnock, who signed the defender twice for Crystal Palace then QPR, says Mark Warburton is pursuing a model professional who will run through walls for his team. ‘Clint could be a very good signing for Rangers,’ Warnock told Sportsmail. ‘Not just on the pitch, but also off it. He’s a good

professional. When you are a young kid, that can’t help but rub off on you. ‘When you see someone like that, who has been around the block but still wants to die for the cause, it’s inspirational. ‘I think Clint gets on with Joey Barton and I wouldn’t be surprised if Joey recommended him. ‘Rangers have some good players and good passers. But sometimes you need steel — and Clint is like that. ‘They will play him left-sided centre-half. He can also play left-back, but his days there against a good winger might have passed. ‘It certainly won’t be about the money with Clint. ‘To play for Rangers will feel like a dream for him because when I picked him up from Stoke, Tony Pulis thought he was finished. ‘Clint has spent a career proving people wrong. ‘If I was still at QPR, there is absolutely no way I would have let him go — not in a million years.’ Warnock is adamant that Hill’s age should not count against him and added: ‘Simon Jordan (the chairman) at Crystal Palace came to me in 2007 and asked me to help him out. My first thought was: “How do I toughen this lot up?”. ‘Clint had been at Stoke and played something like 20 games in three years. His injuries were unbelievable. ‘But I took him on loan for three months with a view to buying him in January. ‘And I said to him: “Right, look at your record, you can’t train every day”. What I needed most was to have him on the pitch and not the treatment table. So we managed him. ‘He could have trained every day but he shouldn’t train every day. And that would be my advice to Mark Warburton. Let him do his own training regime. ‘Yeah, he will join in when he has to, but curb him at times because he is the kind of player who never pulls out of anything. ‘Clint didn’t train all week when I had him but was he one of the first on the teamsheet? Yes. It doesn’t matter if it’s training or a game. He is hard as nails. ‘He’d love the atmosphere at Ibrox and I’m sure the fans would love him back.’ Warburton has already signed Accrington Stanley pair Josh Windass and Matt Crook plus free agent Barton. The Ibrox club are also monitoring the situation of Walsall striker Tom Bradshaw after Barnsley had a bid rejected, while starting talks with Hill.