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RANGERS fans reacted in dismay last night after it emerged chief executive Graham Wallace had asked players to consider a 15 per cent wage cut across the board – sparking fears of another imminent financial meltdown at Ibrox.

In a interview with Record Sport’s chief sports writer, Keith Jackson, Wallace responds to the growing sense of alarm among his club’s fans and insists that another financial collapse is not on the cards. Here he explains why…

KEITH JACKSON: When players are being asked to take wage cuts it suggests the need for some alarm. What message would you send to the Rangers supporters who will quite clearly be concerned by this development?

GRAHAM WALLACE : What I can say is we are conducting a thorough review of every area of our business and of every pound that we are spending and every opportunity to drive revenue. The players’ wages and cost of football operations are naturally the most significant areas of operation in a professional

football club. That goes without saying.

All I am trying to do is look at options in order to move this club towards sustainability. That is my focus. This is not about a need for any immediate

drastic action.

This is about building a structure that will allow us to move towards sustainability and I am exploring every possible option. I think that is fair.

The thing that is slightly disappointing is the way some people are looking at this as an offer which has been made by the club to the players – and that offer has been rejected. No offer has been made. This is more of a conceptual discussion about the possibility of some sort of reduction to see if such a plan would be supported by the players.

Everyone knows the magnitude of the challenge this club faces to reduce our costs. All I am doing is exploring options as to how best to do it.

KJ: You say football operations represent the most significant costs for any club. But the last set of accounts indicated that the player wage bill made up around an £8million portion of the club’s entire £18m wage bill. The perceived logic is that the player wage bill now stands at around £6m.

Supporters will want to know what you are doing about addressing the wages being paid to those outside the first-team dressing room?

GW : That is my focus. We are looking at all areas. You ran a story last week that I have brought in Philip Nash to help me have a look at this.

We have brought in his expertise on a short-term basis to help us identify what we can do to get this club back on the footing that it should be. I think that’s entirely to be expected.

(Image: Danny Lawson/PA Wire)

KJ: But if an already sceptical support is to be placated, these fans will want to see some members of your board feeling the pinch. Is that going to be difficult for you to achieve?

GW : What I would say is I am looking at the entire business. I am looking at everything and as we go through it we will make some change, absolutely.

We will build a business structurally and financially that equips us for future success. I have no doubt about that.

I am continuing to investigate every opportunity. This one today (the player wage cuts) was one we were investigating and it’s maybe just unfortunate that it’s come out as some form of offer which has been rejected.

As I say, no offer has been made. It’s just part of my exploratory discussions which are being carried out right across the business. Hopefully that gives you a bit of perspective.

KJ: Your problem here is that fans see suggested wage cuts and – given everything this club has endured over the last couple of years – they will quite understandably fear the worst.

The last time players took wage cuts at Ibrox the club was being plunged into a financial trauma. The question they need answered by you is clear – is this the beginning of Administration II?

GW : My response would be that this is a pointer towards the action which needs to be taken at an overall level to get the cost base of the club under control in relation to our ability to generate income, to make the club sustainable, to make it stand on its own two feet as we move it forward.

There is no threat of Administration II. Categorically, there is no threat of Administration II.

This simply sits alongside everything else that we are doing here right now – reviewing the business to put it on a sound footing for the future. That is my focus.

KJ: But after what happened in 2012, do you understand why many fans might not be inclined to believe you?

GW : Yes, but you can also understand fans looking at this and saying this is entirely consistent with the message I delivered at the agm.

I said then that our cost base was too great for our income stream. We need to realign it, we need to look at what we’ve got and make changes.

When you have professional football players on long-term contracts at decent money, your ability to do anything contractually is restricted – short of moving people on.

One of the things which is at the core of everything we are trying to do is to maintain a squad and a team that is capable of winning, playing good football and capable of taking us back to the top division.

I am exploring every opportunity, every avenue. These exploratory discussions with the team were approached in exactly that way.

KJ: If I were Ally McCoist, I might have a real problem with this. I might reasonably point to the wage to turnover ratio of under 30 per cent and say you are squeezing me too hard. Has he?

GW : The relationship I have with the manager is good. We both share a similar objective. We want to have a winning team, playing good football.

The question is how best to do that within the financial envelope that we are operating.

We are building for the future. Right now we are well clear at the top of League One and that will take care of itself.

What we are looking into is next season and the season beyond that.

But you have to remember that, all things going to plan, we will have a successful season next year and then we will be back into the top flight.

We have two summer transfer windows before then so there is plenty of time to make sure we have the right footballing capability, relevant to the competition we are in.

But what I am trying to do right now is ensure we can build a sustainable business.