Rangers told to pay Â£1.5m if they want to appoint Derek McInnes

Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes is a happy man after his side beat Ross County 2-1 in the Scottish Premiership. Picture: SNS Group

Former Ibrox star McInnes, who has led the Dons to three consecutive second-place finishes in the Scottish Premiership, is understood to be the favourite to succeed Pedro Caixinha, who departed last week.

And it is believed the Pittodrie club are prepared to let the 46-year-old hold talks with Rangers as they look to appoint the club’s 18th permanent manager.

McInnes signed a contract extension after turning down the chance to take the reins at Sunderland in June, keeping him at Pittodrie until 2020.

The extended deal has seen the price of compensation shoot up from £1 million to £1.5 million, but the increased sum is not expected to deter Rangers in their attempts to secure the ex-St Johnstone and Bristol City boss’s services.

The Gers paid out £500,000 to Qatari outfit Al-Gharafa in March when they appointed Caixinha, and are understood to be willing to part with a larger sum in order to get the right man in at Ibrox.

McInnes scores for Rangers in the Ibrox club's 6-1 League Cup semi final win over Dunfermline in October 1996. Picture: SNS Group

Rangers chairman Dave King is expected to take a more active role in the process of finding a new manager, after he was a largely peripheral figure for the appointments of Mark Warburton and Caixinha.

Michel Preud’homme, the former Club Brugge boss, has indicated a strong interest in the role but the amount of compensation due to the Belgian side - thanks to a clause in his contract - could price Rangers out of a move.