It was revealed last month that former England striker Defoe, 38, would take on a player-coach role after agreeing a new one-year contract at Ibrox.

Wilson told Rangers TV: "It is great to see the players back firstly and all the staff.

"The training ground can be a bit of an empty period in the time leading up to pre-season anyway.

"But having everybody back now is great – this has always been a really tight squad together, so having them all back and feeling their spirit around the place is great.

"There has been a lot of work done here over the summer and the pitches are looking excellent, and there are still some enhancements being done internally inside the building as well, so the place looks great but it is great to have everyone back round it again.

"I talk about 'one club' a lot, and it is about making sure we are absolutely joined up as a club, and whatever practices we are seeing take place at first-team level, can we cascade them into our B Team and into our under-18 team and make sure that we stay ahead, stay current, stay fresh and definitely stay aligned to our strategy and our plan.

"I think that is what we have got now – we have a group of people that really understand what Rangers' strategy and plan looks like, what we are working towards and it is a pleasure to be here and lead these people every day as everyone is absolutely bought into what we are trying to do."