Rangers have been told to make former Huddersfield Town player Josh Windass the heart of their Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership challenge.

Dean Windass has told Mark Warburton to build his side around his son if he wants to close the gap on Celtic.

The performance of the former Accrington Stanley playmaker was the one small chink of light on a dark day for Gers at Parkhead on Saturday.

The Ibrox men were humiliated by a 5-1 thrashing as Brendan Rodgers’ merciless Hoops ran amok in the first Old Firm duel of the season.

The Light Blues have played only five games this term but are already four points adrift of the reigning Ladbrokes Premiership champions – who have played a game fewer.

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Former Aberdeen striker Dean reckons Rangers were too slow to cope with Celtic’s forward line – but claimed it may have be a different story had they made better use of his son’s speed on the ball.

The 22-year-old caught the eye with a number of powerful runs, including a 30-yard drive which paved the way for Gers striker Joe Garner’s consolation goal on the stroke of half-time.

The old rivals do not meet again until December 31, but Windass senior believes the Ibrox management team should already be drawing up a blueprint with Josh the key figure.

He told Press Association Sport: “The Celtic that Brendan is building has energy and pace.

“In my opinion, I don’t think Rangers have enough legs in their team. If you look at guys like Scott Sinclair and James Forrest, Celtic do.

“In my opinion, there is only Josh and Barrie McKay in the Rangers team are going to unlock the door. They need more than that.

“Give Josh the ball because he has pace and power. In my opinion as a supporter and a dad, he didn’t get the ball enough.

“When he did get on the ball he did something with it.

“Listen, Josh is still young, he’s learning the game and has come from Accrington. But the one thing you know is that when he gets the ball, he makes things happen.

“But it’s not just about Josh, it’s about the team.”

Saturday’s demolition derby saw the Hoops support go wild as frontman Moussa Dembele become the first Parkhead player in 50 years to bag a league hat-trick against Rangers.

But Dean says the bruising experience will only benefit his son.

The Hull ambassador explained: “I spoke to Josh. It was an experience he’s never had before. He said to me he had to take a couple of paracetamol when he left the ground because the noise the Celtic supporters made when they scored was so loud it gave him a headache.

“But to play in that stadium with that atmosphere at 22 years old will only help him learn.

“He did not let himself down but you only need to look at the scoreline to see Celtic were a lot stronger.

“Josh isn’t happy with the result obviously but was with how he played. I was too, he did okay.

“It was the biggest game of his life and he will learn from this. Nothing fazes Josh at all.

“I thought he was the best player for Rangers but they lost 5-1. I told him though that he didn’t let anybody down and that was the most important thing.

“He loved the experience and it will only make him stronger. I’m proud of the kid and I’m sure – in fact I know it – he will be a top player.”

Warburton insisted after his side’s mauling there was not a major gulf between the sides and Windass reckons the score will be closer when they teams clash again on Hogmanay.

“Rangers will learn from this,” he said. “When I played for Aberdeen against Rangers I was coming up against Paul Gascoigne and Brian Laudrup and I took loads from those games.

“I don’t think they will be so far apart come the end of the season. I even think Warburton will learn from it.

“Maybe he picked the wrong team on Saturday. I don’t know. I’m not a manager. But I reckon he and Davie Weir will be sitting there this morning analysing where it went wrong.”