Pedro Caixinha insists he faced an impossible task at Rangers - and maintained that the club's descent to the bottom of Scottish football scuppered all hope of topping Celtic.
The former Ibrox boss lasted just 229 days at the club from March 2017, with his disastrous stint best known for a horror Europa League exit at the hands of Luxembourg minnows Progres Niederkorn.
As well as a dreadful showing on the continent, Rangers also suffered a 5-1 home defeat and two 2-0 reverses against Celtic under his watch.
And he insists Rangers' 2012 liquidation and subsequent rise through the divisions had left them ill-equipped to challenge the Hoops’ dominance.
However, despite his miserable stint in Govan, the Portuguese coach hopes that Rangers can find a way to halt the Hoops juggernaut before they rack up 10 in a row.
Caixinha said: “Rangers were involved in a process of descent to the fourth tier before I arrived and that completely removed the possibility of dethroning Celtic, in structural, financial and competitive terms.
“At that time, Aberdeen had taken the place of Rangers.
“Now, Rangers and Celtic are second and first, (in the Premiership ) respectively, but the truth remains that Rangers have not won any cup yet. Celtic remains one step ahead.
“(But) I hope that they will not surpass Rangers’ nine in a row.”
Caixinha is currently out of work after resigning from his post with Cruz Azul last September but has revealed that he was approached by a third party supposedly representing Sheffield Wednesday, opening the door to a return to British football.
In an interview with Portuguese newspaper Record, he was initially asked about suggestions that he was in the running for the top job with Brazilian giants Vasco de Gama - before discussing the Hillborough vacancy last year.
He added: “Could I have joined Vasco de Gama? There were only approaches by third parties. The Sheffield Wednesday situation is somewhat similar to Vasco da Gama’s."
Caixinha, meanwhile, revealed that he is using the current coronavirus lockdown to swot up on the tactics of clubs like Atalanta, Dortmund and Manchester City as he eyes his next challenge.
He continued: “At first I tried to analyse the last two years I spent at Cruz Azul.
“Then I selected some teams - Atalanta, Leipzig, Dortmund, Man. City and Inter - and I tried to study them in detail, trying to find points of reference with my ideas or new trends at that level.
“If there is something I try to do often, then it is to question all ideas and concepts. I am looking for development.”
