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Italian centre-half Lorenzo Amoruso played more than 200 matches for Rangers over six seasons from 2007

Lorenzo Amoruso described his joy at Rangers' promotion to the Premiership as that of "a kid that gets to go out in the countryside and play football".

The Italian, a fans' favourite in his six seasons at Ibrox from 1997-2003, said: "To see my old club back in the Premiership is absolutely fantastic.

"I think what happened a few years ago was not the best choice for Scottish football but I didn't make the decision, someone else did.

"I'm delighted they are back again."

The "choice" the former defender was referring to was a vote in July 2012, by 10 of the 12 Scottish Premier League teams, against an application from the new company running Rangers to play in the top tier.

With the SPL no longer an option, 25 out of 30 Scottish Football League teams then voted in favour of Rangers being admitted to the bottom division.

Amoruso told the BBC's World Service: "Starting from the first day everyone did a fantastic job but I must say this is not the end, it's just the beginning. I would like to see Rangers back on top again.

"You can't think about Rangers having a season where they are just surviving in the Premiership - Rangers isn't about that.

"Don't get me wrong, they need to invest but they have done extremely well so you shouldn't change lots of things.

"Rangers have a massive name, an unbelievable history and fantastic support so there are three great reasons why Rangers should start the league trying to win it.

Skipper Lorenzo Amoruso carries the 1999-2000 Scottish Premier League trophy

"I'm sure most Celtic supporters probably didn't really enjoy the last four years. No disrespect to the other clubs but without Rangers the league definitely is not the same."

Asked about his passion for the Ibrox club, Amoruso, 44, said: "I never left Rangers, trust me; my body left Rangers.

"But my heart and my brain is always there, that's the way I feel."