Rangers shareholder Mike Ashley yesterday launched a bid to have chief executive Graham Wallace and director Philip Nash removed from the club’s PLC board, the Ibrox outfit announced in a statement to the stock exchange.

Ashley, who also owns Premier League club Newcastle, made his move just six days after increasing his stake in the Glasgow giants to 8.92 per cent.

The Sports Direct tycoon has now called for an emergency general meeting to vote on his resolutions but the current Rangers board have declared they will fight to save Wallace and Nash’s positions.

Ashley had previously owned three million shares in the club, which he bought when Rangers was floated back in December 2012.

However, just three weeks after announcing he would not partake in the emergency open offer the club was forced to launch last month to solve its short-term cash crisis, Ashley splashed out around £850,000 on buying more than four million existing shares from investment group Hargreave Hale.

The open offer was undersubscribed by just less than £800,000, meaning the club’s board will now have to launch another share issue before the end of the year in order to meet December’s wage bill.

A board statement read: “The notice puts forward resolutions for the removal of Graham Wallace and Philip Nash as directors of the company. The company is currently verifying that the notice is properly constituted.

“If valid, the board intends to seek to have such notice withdrawn in order to avoid the cost and disruption of an ad hoc general meeting, particularly given the company’s forthcoming annual general meeting, further details of which will be announced in due course.

“The board is united in its support of the executive team. If the notice is valid and is not withdrawn, the directors intend to recommend that shareholders vote against the proposed resolutions. A further announcement will be made shortly.”