GIOVANNI VAN BRONCKHORST will consult with former Rangers boss Steven Gerrard after revealing he received a good luck message from his Ibrox predecessor.

Van Bronckhorst was unveiled as Rangers' 17th permanent manager on Monday afternoon as he officially took office and followed Gerrard into the Light Blues hotseat.

Gerrard quit the champions earlier this month to clinch a deal with Aston Villa but has already been in touch with the man that is now aiming to defend the Premiership title this term.

Van Bronckhorst said: "He sent me a message by email which was really nice. I think we will definitely be in contact in the coming weeks to talk all about stuff.

"He did a really great job at Rangers and has now moved to the Premier League with Aston Villa.

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"I personally wish him all the best and I’m sure there will be some contact in the next few weeks."

Van Bronckhorst was in the Hampden stands as Rangers saw their Premier Sports Cup campaign come to a premature end with defeat to Hibernian on Sunday.

Now he will aim to mark his return to Ibrox in style as the champions prepare for their defining Europa League clash with Sparta Prague this week.

The Dutchman won five major honours after moving to Glasgow in 1998 and is fully aware of the need to deliver further silverware success.

Van Bronckhorst said: “It’s been a moment where we first had the contact last week. For me, it was quite easy because I know the club and how big Rangers is.

“For me, it wasn’t an issue of thinking over this job. But, of course, you have to talk to the people first and see if they were really offering me the job.

“But I was confident I would have the job because it’s a club I want to lead. I want to bring success to the club.

“I was working in a big club as well in Feyenoord - a very big club with a lot of pressure. It was a club I knew from when I was very young.

"So those clubs are very similar and hopefully I can bring the same success as I did with my staff to Rangers."