THE process will be the same for Jon McLaughlin. This time, the outcome could be different at Ibrox.
Two seasons as an able, reliable deputy to Allan McGregor have seen McLaughlin earn medals and plaudits for Rangers but it is the number one jersey that he really covets as he prepares for his third term between the sticks.
The question over who will start the campaign as Giovanni van Bronckhorst's first choice goalie has permeated the summer. In a matter of days, the world will have its answer.
If McLaughlin strides out to face Livingston in the Premiership opener, it will be seen as confirmation of his new status, the realisation of an ambition that he has long since held and is now closer than ever to achieving at Rangers.
"That is always what you are hoping for from the minute you come to a club," McLaughlin said when asked if this was the season for him to make the jersey his own. "I am certainly not at the stage where I am happy sitting in the background and just watching on and playing a supporting role.
"Every player is in the same boat, everyone wants to be playing and not sat on the sidelines watching. As always you are doing everything you can to get that jersey and get the nod to be on the pitch playing.
"Of course I would have liked to have played more over the last couple of years, but at the end of the day you are playing for a massive club with fantastic players.
"Greegsy is a top class goalkeeper. So you have to go in every day, work as hard as you can to be the best version of yourself and see where that leaves you and that is what I’ll be doing again this season."
A record of nine clean sheets from 16 appearances was further confirmation, not that it was needed, of McLaughlin's abilities last term as he played his part, on and off the field, during a remarkable campaign at Ibrox.
It was one which ended in Europa League heartache and Scottish Cup joy, one which has whetted the appetite of what could come at home and abroad as Van Bronckhorst guides his side through the respective trials and tribulations and towards silverware once again.
At 34, McLaughlin still has plenty to offer Rangers. After two seasons at Ibrox, now could be his moment to really come to the fore.
"I feel that I have continued to improve throughout my career and all the way through," McLaughlin said. "You are always learning, you have always got more to give, that is for sure.
"Coming to a club like this, when you start to get your first taste of European football and that level, it does bring you on more and more.
"There is that pressure of week in week out needing to perform and you can’t afford to have off days.
"It means you need to bring your best all the time and hopefully that means you continue to improve and get to a point where you are the man for the job. That is my aim but I am sure that is also still Allan’s aim, as it always has been.
"We keep reiterating that as a group we are all working really hard, we all have the club’s best interests at heart and whoever the best eleven to go out is, that is who will be out there and the rest of the lads will be supporting."
Time will tell whether McLaughlin will spend most of the season watching on from the bench or whether he will be the last line of defence for Van Bronckhorst's side as Rangers strive for success in the coming months.
The Premiership title must be regained, the Scottish Cup retained and the League Cup lifted. Add in the upcoming Champions League campaign and it becomes clear why there is a sense of excitement around a squad that has been bolstered by seven new signings this summer.
McLaughlin said: "I think everyone is looking forward to it. Obviously last year was a big season for the club with everything that happened with Europe, so close and an amazing journey for everybody.
"In the end, only winning the Scottish Cup. We are obviously very hungry for a lot more than that so everyone is looking forward to trying to hit the ground running.
"That (having feelings of what might have been) is always going to happen but at the end of the day it swings like that throughout the season.
"There would have been points where Celtic were behind and looking at the points they dropped and at clubs like Rangers, you are expected to win every game so you are always going to look back at any points dropped as opportunities missed.
"That is why these league titles are so difficult to win and why we do celebrate so massively when we achieve it because it is a huge thing to do over the course of the season with hardly putting a foot wrong.
"It is going to be a difficult task but the boss has built a strong squad again and improved in areas with the new signings so we are really confident and looking forward to it."
