The Portugal international missed the 2-0 loss at home to Hamilton, but has stepped up his rehabilitation ahead of Friday’s meeting with Dundee.

Having been a regular in the Gers side under previous manager Pedro Caixinha, Alves has failed to break into Graeme Murty’s team since suspension ruled him out of the clash against Hearts at BT Murrayfield.

Bruno Alves missed the 2-0 defeat to Hamilton but is hoping to be back in contention for the Dundee game on Friday. Picture: SNS Group

He will continue to be assessed before a decision is made on his fitness for the Dundee clash.

“Bruno Alves wasn’t fit for Saturday with a sore back and he has stepped up his rehab, but it is very much a day-by-day process for him and we will see how he reports in tomorrow,” caretaker boss Murty told RangersTV.

Lee Wallace continues to make good progress following a groin injury that has kept him out for over two months, but will not be rushed back into action by Murty, who admitted he has no set date on the captain’s return.

He said: “Lee Wallace is doing some really good numbers. We just have to make sure his specifics for his groin are all hit, and we make sure he is fully fit and firing when he comes back.

“It is encouraging seeing him open up and seeing him hit the speeds which he is hitting at the moment.”

When asked if he had a date in mind, he added: “I don’t, and while I’m not relaxed about it, I know he is in really good hands. Stevie (Walker, the physio) gives me really good reports on what he is doing and how he is progressing, so we know, when he is due to come back into training, he will be ready to handle the load.

“It’ll then be a question of getting his match fitness and his sharpness up and getting some more volume into him so he can go and train with the players flat-out.”

Graham Dorrans is continuing his rehab following an ankle problem while Jordan Rossiter is being eased back to fitness following his latest knee injury which has kept him out since late August.

Murty said: “Jordan Rossiter is progressing on. I get loads of tweets all the time about how he is doing and we are just having to make sure we keep Jordan informed, make sure he is ready to go when his body is ready and make sure we don’t get too frustrated as he could get really frustrated.

“He wants to be on the pitch and he wants to be playing all the time. We just have to make sure we get him ready and he is ready to go when his body is good and done.”

Bruno Alves '˜missed Hamilton game with back problem'