Former Rangers winger Mark Walters witnessed from his early days that Steven Gerrard had the type of mentality needed to close the gap on Celtic.

The former Liverpool player has known Gerrard since he was a child and feels his experience in dealing with big expectations will be vital in his job as Ibrox manager.

Walters has noticed vast improvement in Rangers this season and feels they could even win the league in Gerrard's first attempt.

Walters, who was promoting his autobiography, Wingin' It, at Ibrox, said: "Expectations are high and he has experienced that from a child.

"When I was at Liverpool, I heard how good he was as a player and I I even met him when he was doing some rehab at Lilleshall, because I think he had a lot of injuries when he was young.

"And you could tell then he had the right mentality for a big club and he has proved that as a player, and I think he will prove that as a manager as well.

"He is going to have a few hiccups, which is normal, but he's a winner and you can see that by the way the games have been played.

"It's the same expectation that he is used to, so he knows what to expect,

"Some teams will lose on Saturday and try and get over it by Monday. But when you're at a big clubs like Rangers, like Liverpool, it can probably take you a month to get over a bad result.

"But you have still got to keep going and that's what he knows what to do, because he has been there."

Gerrard has led Rangers into the Europa League group stages and Betfred Cup semi-finals and his team have scored 13 goals in their last three games at Ibrox.

Walters said: "I'm really impressed with the way things have turned round.

"They are playing good football, attacking football. And some of the games have been a joy to watch. I have really enjoyed watching the games as opposed to the last few years, it was like something was holding them back.

"Now they are playing with a lot more freedom and tactically are more aware, and that comes down to Gerrard."

One down side so far has been Rangers' away form in the Ladbrokes Premiership, which has seen them collect just two points from four matches, the latest a 1-0 defeat by Livingston on Sunday.

Walters said: "No season is going to go perfectly. My football head said to me if they can finish second it would be a great achievement with all that's happened and the gap that's been with Celtic.

"Obviously the romantic side of me is saying if we can beat them in the two games at Ibrox then you could be challenging.

"You are going to have a few hiccups but in the main things are going in the right direction. I know a lot of people maybe frustrated with the game on Sunday but you have to look at the bigger picture.

"It's a long season, it's a marathon, and it's where you finish that counts.

"I wouldn't write Rangers off yet because of one bad result."