Robin Propper should prepare for Rangers baptism of fire and I have 2 bits of advice for him - Barry Ferguson

The ink has hardly dried on his Rangers contract but Robin Propper should be prepared for a baptism of fire already.

Because if I were Philippe Clement I’d want to have the Dutchman marshalling my defence from day one at Tynecastle. We’re not dealing with some young kid who is wet behind the ears. He’s 30-years-old, he’s been captain of his club in Holland and he’s had a full pre-season with Twente Enschede. Having done a bit of research on him he looks to me like a really solid professional and a natural leader. So, as long as he’s fully fit, I’d fire him straight into this one and let him show everyone what he’s all about.

But I’d also have a quiet word with him before kick-off to offer a couple of bits of advice. Number one: “Listen big man, this is going to be 100 miles an hour for the opening ten or fifteen minutes so you’d better be on it from the first whistle!”. And number two? Pick out Larwence Shankland and don’t give him an inch from start to finish. Stop Shankland and you’ll stop Hearts.

That’s not meant to sound disrespectful either. Steven Naismith is a good manager and he has plenty of talent in his squad. But Shankland is the one guy who can really hurt you and that’s why Propper will have his work cut out if he does make his debut on the opening day of the new campaign. Let’s be blunt here, Shankland is not just Hearts’ best player - he was the top striker in Scotland’s Premiership last season - and all eyes are going to be on him this weekend, after all the speculation linking him with a move across the M8.

I’m told that the interest remains strong and I don’t expect it to go away any time soon either. But I also don’t expect Shankland to allow it to affect the level of his performance. Players do tell