Smith happy to have McCoist at helm

Walter Smith insists he will be more than happy to hand over the reins to Ally McCoist when he brings his second spell at Rangers to an end – but he is well aware of the level of success he must first deliver in order to allow his assistant to replace him at the Ibrox helm.

Chairman Sir David Murray has revealed that McCoist is being lined up as the club's future boss – but only if the current management team can end Celtic's dominance of Scottish football by reclaiming the championship.

"The chairman did say that we would have to be successful here and that's the one thing that everyone has to remember first and foremost," said Smith. "But I hope Alistair does get the opportunity.

Rangers face Aberdeen in the Premier League tomorrow. The Dons earned a draw at Pittodrie earlier in the season and Smith is well aware of the task they face against a team who traditionally save their best form for their clashes with Rangers. "Aberdeen do raise their game against us, there is no doubt about that," said Smith. "Tomorrow's game is a big game. We've got decent home form and we hope to keep that going."