Pedro Caixinha: I love to make Rangers fans happy

Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha is mobbed by fans after his side's 2-1 victory over St Johnstone. Picture: PA

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Rangers ensured they finished on a minor high by beating St Johnstone 2-1 in Perth on Sunday.

But it will not wash away the disappointments of a season which has ended with the Light Blues trudging home in third, a massive 39 points adrift of champions Celtic.

However Caixinha says he is determined to ensure the supporters who mobbed him at full-time for a rendition of the ‘Bouncy’ do not have to suffer a repeat next year.

Speaking after goals from Kenny Miller and Jon Toral sealed victory, he said: “I’m a guy of the people, I like to enjoy these times with fans.

“For sure I hope there will be more success for them in future. We work for the supporters. We have the best fans in the world.

“We love to make them happy and we want to share that happiness with them.”

Watch: Pedro Caixinha does '˜The Bouncy' with Rangers fans

With just over a month to prepare for the club’s first Europa League qualifier on June 29, the job now for the Portuguese coach is to assemble a group of players better able to meet the expectations of those fans.

Caixinha would not comment on reports he has agreed a deal to sign Aberdeen’s Ryan Jack, nor would he confirm how many signings he is planning.

But he did insist he was well down the road to securing fresh talent.

Asked if the hard work starts now, the Ibrox boss - who revealed defender Danny Wilson’s knee injury will see him miss the club’s first European clashes as he starts a 10-week recovery period - replied: “No, we’ve been working in that direction since we arrived. We hope to have the job done as soon as possible.

“I’m definitely glad to have had an overview in the last two months. One of the main reasons we came to the club early from Qatar and why Rangers had to pay for us to come was to assess and make decisions.

“That was really important. If we could not have arrived two months ago and would only have arrived at the end of the season it could have been different, but now we have made decisions and we are working on the next steps and we’re just waiting on it.

“The team will be something different next season, definitely.

“We have four competitions to fight for and we will see (if we are celebrating with silverware at the end of next season). The first rule is to build a squad and the second step is to create a winning mentality and the third is to put it into practice in the games.

“But I want to win all the time. I do believe that you need a solid base if you want to win continuously.

“We’ve not had that continuity but we are creating a solid base. We are going to have a strong and competitive team that is going to please our fans and the history of this club.”

Gers took their time warming up but took the lead five minutes before the break when Miller found the corner of the net from Martyn Waghorn’s cut-back.

On-loan Arsenal midfielder Toral then signed off from his Ibrox stint with a goal after James Tavernier’s brilliant run.

But Graham Cummins sparked a nervy finale when he rifled home with 14 minutes remaining.

Saints could not find an equaliser but that did not take the shine off a campaign that has seen them finish in the top half for the sixth year running.

“It’s been a brilliant season” said manager Tommy Wright.

“If you had said at the start we’d get 58 points, score 50 goals, win 10 away games and get fourth place and a European place, I’d have bitten your hand off.

“So it’s been an incredible season for us and outwith Celtic and what they’ve achieved, what we’ve achieved has been great with the resources we have.”