McCoist was pleased to see Steven Smith back in action

Rangers assistant manager Ally McCoist was not getting carried away after beating Partick Thistle 2-0 in their Scottish Cup replay at Firhill.

The CIS Cup winners and SPL leaders are in the Uefa Cup semi-finals and are now in the last four of the Scottish Cup.

"We have given ourselves a chance of winning the Scottish Cup because we are still in it," he told BBC Sport.

"I'm not talking about quadruples or anything like that but it is another step in the right direction."

Rangers will meet St Johnstone at Hampden next Sunday for a place in the final after Thistle were sunk by goals from Nacho Novo and Chris Burke.

"The result was always going to be more important than the performance," added McCoist.

"There's always a bit of a worry when you come to a place like this.

"But I thought, over the 90 minutes, we deserved the win."

Steven Smith made his return after a 16-month absence through injury and McCoist was delighted to see the defender back in action.

"I'm really pleased he came through it," he said.

"I can relate to Stevie's situation because I was out for a long time injured and it's hard to deal with."

Smith was one of seven changes in the Rangers team as a few players were rested ahead of Wednesday's SPL visit to Celtic Park.

"Gone are the days of winning titles with a small group," continued McCoist. "It really is a 24-man squad effort."

Rangers travel across Glasgow with a four point advantage, having played two games less than Celtic.

Looking ahead to the next Old Firm clash, the former Scotland striker said: "Celtic's home record is absolutely fabulous - they are very strong.

"We know Celtic will come right at us. They are a bit like a wounded animal, if you like.

"If we go there and win it will put a serious dent in their title hopes and that's what we aim to do."