Rangers manager Michael Beale has urged a re-examination of the Scottish football schedule to help clubs playing in European competitions.
His side face PSV Eindhoven in a Champions League play-off and the Dutch club have had their domestic fixture postponed ahead of the second leg.
Beale admits that “the schedule probably doesn’t allow” Scotland to “rectify” it for its teams this season.
“I think the schedule is more the issue,” he told BBC Scotland.
“I don’t think it is anything to do with the rule makers, but this early part of the season maybe we should look at how we are helping out teams because, if other countries are doing it, they must have had this debate in years gone past.”
Aberdeen also face a Europa League play-off, while Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian are playing for a place in the Conference League group stage amid a busy start to the domestic season.
“They’ve got huge games coming up,” Beale said. “All of us clubs in Europe this first month of the season will play nine games and other teams will play five.
“Okay, it’s early in the season, but still you’re integrating a lot of players and obviously European co-efficiency and the finance it brings into our league is very important not just for Rangers but for four or five other clubs.
“We are really proud of our clubs midweek, but the effort that goes into that game you then have to look at the games in between and are the games able to recover and put in the same level of performance. Where does that lead to in injuries?”
Rangers, showing eight changes from the side that knocked out Servette in midweek, had to come from behind to beat second-tier Greenock Morton 2-1 on Saturday to progress to the Viaplay Cup quarter-finals.
“Over the piece, I thought it was the right thing to do because we have four games coming up now in the next 10-14 days that are huge for the club,” Beale said.
“We also have players within the squad who want to stake a claim and it’s important you give them that opportunity.”
Beale thought Morton showed that the “standard of the Championship is improving all the time” but described his own side’s performance as “a mixed bag”.
He picked out 20-year-old Johnly Yfeko for special praise, saying the left-back “was excellent” as he made his first Rangers start.
