Rangers players can help Scotland, says Ibrox manager Pedro Caixinha

Lee Wallace and Graham Dorrans played together for Scotland in 2010

Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha has backed the Scottish players in his squad to stake their claim for the national team.

The Ibrox club had players representing Portugal and Northern Ireland during the recent international break.

But none of their Scottish players were on senior international duty.

"Rangers needs to have not only players in those national teams but also we want to have players in the Scottish national team," said Caixinha.

"It's one of the goals from us. We know they are doing well and we expect them at least to make the play-offs and we want to have a contribution from our players in that run."

Bruno Alves featured in Portugal's win over Hungary, while fellow defender Lee Hodson was a substitute in Northern Ireland's 2-0 victory against Czech Republic.

Celtic had five outfield players in the Scotland sides that faced Lithuania and Malta

The Scots, featuring six Celtic players and one from Hearts, beat Lithuania and Malta without conceding a goal and are in contention to reach the play-offs for next year's World Cup finals in Russia.

Rangers captain Lee Wallace, fellow defender Danny Wilson and midfielder Graham Dorrans have 27 Scotland caps between them.

"It is important for our players when they go there that they receive minutes," Caixinha explained.

"It is also important for our players, when they go there, that the national teams are fighting to be present in the great competitions of the world - and what better than a World Cup?

"It is important for them to come back, enjoy winning and have that spirit - that is always good for us as a team."