Rangers youngster Josh McPake admits he is facing the most important season of his career as he aims to become a first-team star at Ibrox.
The 20-year-old joined Championship side Queen's Park on a season-long loan last week and made his debut for the Spiders when he climbed off the bench in a 1-1 draw with Hamilton in the Premier Sports Cup.
It has been a summer of uncertainty for the Coatbridge winger, who is entering his sixth loan spell in three years after stints at Dundee, Morton, Harrogate Town, Morecambe and Tranmere Rovers.
After his loan at English League Two outfit Tranmere didn't go as well as hoped, there were reports he could have had his Ibrox contract 'ripped up' due to questions over his attitude.
But McPake was determined to prove the doubters wrong on his return to Auchenhowie and scored four times in three pre-season games for Gio van Bronckhorst's Light Blues.
Now the Scotland under-21 international wants to make an impact this season after being given words of encouragement by his Dutch gaffer and reckons it could be make or break for his future at Rangers.
Speaking exclusively to Lanarkshire Live Sport , McPake - who is under contract at Ibrox until 2024 - explained: "The manager [van Bronckhorst] said to me to go out on loan and you never know what can happen if you work hard.
"He said take it day-by-day and make sure I do well.
"The club is pleased with me and I came back in good shape in the summer.
"I'm pleased with that myself and I feel in a really good place.
"It's probably the most important season for me.
"The last few years it was important for me to go down to England and get a taste of men's football and the physical side of the game, but the plan was always to come back up.
"I want to be a Rangers player so if I need to go out and prove myself at another club on loan, that's fine by me and I think I can do that at Queen's Park.
"I worked hard over the summer to make sure I could go back into pre-season at Rangers as fit as I could be.
"That has done me the world of good because when I came back in at Rangers I felt I did well in my performances, so now it's about making sure I do well in this loan and make sure I'm looking after myself.
"That's me 20 now so I knew I had to work really hard in the summer.
"Rangers are a quality team and that's what you need to do to play for the club, so I think that hard work was necessary."
McPake got half an hour under his belt after coming on as a substitute for Louis Longridge on Saturday and hopes to play an integral part as ambitious Queen's Park look to make their mark in the Championship, following back-to-back promotions in the SPFL.
On joining the Spiders he said: "It was a very quick turnaround to come in and there's a few bits and bobs to be finished, but I knew about the move for a while.
"I'm just glad I got a few things sorted to allow me to come in on Saturday and I'm really excited for this.
"I really liked the ambition of the club here and what the gaffer [Coyle] and the staff had to say to me.
"The ambition of the club is unbelievable.
"They want to achieve the same as me. I want to go ahead in my career and they want the club to go forward too, so I think it is a good match.
"That made my decision even easier and to make it a season-long loan.
"I'm pleased to be here and Im buzzing to get started.
"I've been down south for a couple of years now and I loved it down there.
"I enjoyed every minute. I played against some very good teams down there, it was very competitive too, but I am pleased to be back home."
Having spent pre-season under the tutelage of van Bronckhorst and now set for a campaign under former Burnley boss Coyle, McPake knows he is learning from some of the best.
He added: "It's good company to be in. Both of them are very good managers and they know their stuff.
"When I spoke to Owen he was brilliant with me as well and I'm very pleased he's allowed me to come here."
Follow Lanarkshire Live Sport on Twitter via @LanLiveSport, like us on Facebook or find us on Instagram for the latest sports news, pictures and video.
