The January transfer window is more important for Rangers this month than most teams in the Scottish Premiership.

Manager Graeme Murty and Director of Football Mark Allen are tasked with not only finding talent that can improve the first team, but doing so on a budget, after a significant transfer outlay last summer.

The club invested heavily into the reign of Pedro Caixinha in the last transfer window, a decision that ultimately proved rather disastrous after the Portuguese's ill-fated start to the new season.

The first team could do with some new personnel again, with the revolving door at Ibrox in the last few transfer windows failing to produce a team capable of competing for major honours in Scottish football.

Here are THREE players who could compete for places at Ibrox in Rangers' price range...

Greg Docherty

Box-to-box midfielder Greg Docherty has been one of the stand-outs in the Scottish Premiership this season, as influential for Hamilton as any other player for their respective clubs.

He's scored three times and assisted another six in the league for the Accies, a direct goal contribution of nine, which is almost a third of all of their goals in the top flight this season.

Still just 21 years of age, he has plenty of improving to do too and has been earmarked as a future Scotland international, with U21 caps to his name.

Rangers have plenty of hard working defensively minded midfielders but Docherty has that attacking edge that could give Graeme Murty's first team a boost through the middle in an attacking sense.

Rated at £270,000 by Transfermarkt and with Hamilton not really in a financial position to refuse fair offers for players, he's well within the budget of the Ibrox club.

Sean Longstaff

Newcastle United midfielder Sean Longstaff is another player who has been integral to his team's fortunes this season. Currently on loan at League One side Blackpool, the dynamic central player has contributed five goals and five assists in 22 league appearances for the recently promoted Seasiders, helping them to a comfortable mid-table position.

Like Greg Docherty, he is still young, has a bright future in the game and can add an attacking edge to the Light Blues midfield.

Fortunately for Rangers, his talent comes with favourable circumstances given his contract with parent club Newcastle is set to expire at the end of the season, meaning he would be available for a cross-border compensation fee.

He has experience of the Scottish Premiership too, making 16 appearances on loan at Kilmarnock last season, scoring three goals.

John Souttar

With Pedro Caixinha's defensive signings Bruno Alves and Fabio Cardoso not quite working out in the first half of the season, manager Graeme Murty has had to revert to using homegrown talent such as David Bates and Danny Wilson in recent weeks.

Strengthening this position must be seen as a key priority at Ibrox, with Rangers shipping more goals in the Scottish Premiership than three other teams in the top six positions. One of those teams is Hearts, who outside of Celtic have the best defensive record in the division.

Central to that has been defender John Souttar, who, alongside Christophe Berra has transformed a Hearts defence that leaked far too many goals last season.

The 21 year old has played 18 times for the Jam Tarts this season, helping them keep eight clean sheets in the matches he has played, six of which have come in his last six matches.

One of those shut outs also came at Ibrox back in August, where he shone brightly in the visitors' defensive line, even hitting the bar with a 35 yard thunderbolt of a shot.

Rated at £540,000 by Transfermarkt, he's another Scotland U21 international who could immediately compete for places in Graeme Murty's starting eleven.