McInnes has appointed Lawrence Shankland as Rangers captain ahead of the new Premiership season, replacing the long-serving James Tavernier in the role.
The new Ibrox manager worked with Shankland previously at Hearts, where the striker served as club captain for several years at Tynecastle.
McInnes was clear that while Shankland holds the armband, the responsibility of leadership must be distributed far more widely across the dressing room this season.
“The advantage Lawrence had is that I’ve already seen first-hand how well he runs a dressing room, with his experience captaining Hearts for a few years,” McInnes said.
He added that Shankland’s background as a Glasgow-born Rangers supporter also weighed heavily in his favour when making the decision.
“He knows the club as a Glasgow boy who has supported Rangers and understands what’s expected of him, of me and of the team this season,” McInnes explained.
The manager was keen to avoid the situation that surrounded his predecessor’s captaincy, where one player bore the brunt of public accountability after difficult results.
“At Rangers, I always felt it was a bit unfair that James Tavernier was rolled out after every sore defeat, it was always the same guy fronting up,” McInnes said.
He stressed that a collective approach to leadership is essential, saying the club needs “as many captains underneath him as possible” to share the burden effectively.
Rangers open their Premiership campaign on Friday night away at Tannadice against Dundee United, a fixture McInnes described as a tough opener that the fixture list has not been kind in scheduling.
McInnes is also pushing to finalise his eighth signing of the summer, with South Africa international defender Olwethu Makhanya from Philadelphia Union the subject of a reported £3 million deal.
“[Makhanya] is one that is close. We’re pretty close to announcing that, so it’s safe to say that one looks good for us,” McInnes confirmed.
The manager highlighted defensive depth as a priority, noting the squad remains short on numbers at the back and that further arrivals are expected before the transfer window closes.
On the outgoing side, midfielder Oliver Antman appears set to complete a move to Anderlecht, with McInnes confirming the player had already travelled to finalise the transfer.
Regarding reported interest in Nico Raskin from Villarreal and Real Betis, McInnes said he was not aware of any formal offers having arrived at the club as of yet.
McInnes also confirmed he will appeal his three-game touchline ban, meaning he hopes to be present in the dugout when Rangers kick off their league campaign at Dundee United on Friday night.
“I want to be there because I want to be able to do my job. We will appeal the ban and hopefully that allows me to be on the touchline,” he said.
Vanja Dragojevic has been granted a visa and is available for selection, while Thelo Aasgaard and Cammy Devlin have both recovered from knocks sustained against West Ham last Sunday.
McInnes closed by expressing confidence in the squad’s attitude and preparation, saying the players have been “first-class in terms of effort” throughout a demanding pre-season period.
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