Rangers say manager Warburton has resigned

( Reuters) - Mark Warburton has resigned as manager of Rangers, the Scottish Premiership club said on Friday.

However, Warburton told the BBC he had not stood down from his post and was unaware of the club's statement.

The record 54-times Scottish champions are third in the standings, 27 points behind leaders and arch-rivals Celtic after returning to the top flight this season.

They were demoted to the fourth tier of Scottish football in 2012 after going into administration due to financial problems.

"Rangers has accepted the resignations of manager Mark Warburton, assistant David Weir & the Club’s head of recruitment Frank McParland," Rangers said on their official Twitter feed.

The 54-year-old Englishman Warburton, former manager of English Championship (second-tier) club Brentford, took over as Rangers boss in June, 2015 on a three-year contract.

(Writing by Ed Osmond; Editing by Ken Ferris)