Mark Warburton has defended Rangers' conduct when securing deals for Josh Windass and Matt Crooks, insisting there's value to be found in England's lower leagues.

The Accrington Stanley pair agreed to join the Scottish Championship leaders on four-year deals, starting this summer. Stanley owner Andy Holt was unhappy at FIFA regulations, which mean his club will receive a smaller sum for the duo than if they had moved to another English club.

Holt was also unhappy at Rangers' lack of contact with his manager John Coleman with the Accrington boss accusing the pair of being disrespectful to his club's fans.

Warburton responded by saying: "I think the frustration rightly or wrongly is more with the system than with the way we have conducted our business. Rangers have done everything by the process and, I hope, professionally."

Warburton pointed to the example of Andre Gray, who joined his Brentford team from Luton in 2014 before completing a £9m move to Burnley last summer.

Gray is currently the top scorer in the English Championship with 15 goals in 22 games this term. The Rangers boss also revealed he missed out on signing England and Leicester forward Jamie Vardy due to money.

He said: "My answer to that would be to ask: 'How much would Andre Gray cost right now?'

"He came from Luton in the Conference to Brentford in the Championship for £500,000. That was a huge jump but he dealt with it and developed exceptionally well. I don't know what his value is now but I imagine it's at least £12million.

"He's now working with a very talented manager in Sean Dyche at Burnley but don't forget 18 months ago where he was.

"Jamie Vardy was offered to me when he was at Fleetwood but we couldn't afford him. He went for £1million which was a lot of money. He was a talent but now I look back and there's the occasional swear word when I think about missing out on him.

"(Identifying these players) is what we get paid for. That's why I hire experts like (chief scout) Frank McParland. Our job is to spot players who we think can develop quickly and move on to the next level.

"There's always risk. There is as much risk with a £50million player as there is with a £5,000 player. It's about your recruitment, your due diligence, your knowledge and your eye.

"But you have to live and die by your decision. If you get seven out of 10 right you're in a good place."