Rangers defender Gareth McAuley reckons international colleague Steven Davis would love to return to Ibrox for a second stint with the Light Blues.

Davis has been strongly linked with a move back to Glasgow after finding himself frozen out of the first team picture at Southampton.

McAuley said his Northern Ireland teammate was keeping his cards close to his chest over talk of a potential January switch but admitted Davis is frustrated at having to warm the bench.

On a move for Davis, he said: "I don't know if it's on the cards but he is a player who has been here before, he's captained the club and knows what it's about.

"He's made my best XI, he's a top player and a great guy.

McAuley added: "He's one of those players that isn't really appreciated other than the club he is at, the players down there will know what a fantastic player he is.

"I know he's frustrated at not playing, if the opportunity is there for him I'm sure he'd love to.

"This is an amazing club, I can't think of anywhere better to play."

Steven Gerrard has already signalled his intent to add to his Rangers squad in January.

McAuley was one of 14 players recruited by the Ibrox club in the summer and the 39-year-old said he expects more new faces in the door soon.

He added: "The club wants to move forward and will obviously want to bring other players in.

"The lads are open to that, we want to progress so any help we can get is more than welcome."

Rangers bowed out of the Europa League after losing 1-0 to Rapid in their final group match.

The defeat brought an end to a lengthy European run for the Light Blues, who kicked off their campaign back in the summer in the first round of the competition.

McAuley urged his teammates to take heart from their experiences on the continent when they return to domestic action this weekend against Hamilton.

He added: "The lads are disappointed, they've come on a journey and feel frustrated not to have reached the last 32.

"It's the first time a lot of players have played European football, the good thing is they are talking about next year, that's a real positive.

"It's a really driven group, everyone wants to progress the group and be challenging.

"We have to get back to domestic action.

"Football moves on very quickly, the lads will draw on the European campaign and hopefully we can use that for the rest of the season."