Newcastle United owner and billionaire Mike Ashley offered to provide a loan of around £10 million to Rangers yesterday but in return he wants security of Ibrox Stadium and Murray Park training ground.

With the Ibrox side needing a significant investment over the next few weeks, it looks as though Ashley is looking to take advantage of the financial situation at Rangers to extend his control of the club.

Ashley has made his move after Dave King and the Three Bears consortium snapped up a significant shareholding of Rangers International FC plc.

The Three Bears consortium are rumoured to have offered £5m in return for two seats on the board and security over Murray Park but that amount is not enough to see the club last until the end of the season.

It was announced early yesterday morning that Rangers had lodged advance loan notices of security against Ibrox and Murray Park on behalf of Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct. The papers mean that Sports Direct can only be granted security on Ibrox and Murray Park for a 35-day period.

Ashley’s £10m loan on the table means that Rangers could meet this month’s wage bill and have funding for the rest of the season but the acceptance of said loan could cause a massive reaction from Rangers fans who are already disgruntled with the way the club is being managed on and off the park and who were reassured last year that the club’s stadium would never be used as security.

It may be a new year but the same old issues seem to continue off the field for this once great club.

Meanwhile, Rangers have failed in their bid to secure permission to appeal against the Scottish Professional Football League’s (SPFL) decision to fine the club £250,000 for undisclosed payments to players.

They were challenging the decision made by the SPFL to attempt to recover the fine, which was imposed after the club’s failure to disclose untaxed payments made to players.

The Ibrox side issued a statement to the London Stock Exchange in which they announced they had lost an appeal with a Scottish FA judicial panel and would take the matter to arbitration but their fight seems to have not got past a preliminary hearing.

They could not take the case to the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport.