NEARLY three years have passed since Charlie Adam last walked out at Ibrox.

When the Liverpool midfielder departed back in February 2009 his career was on the slide.

Rangers boss Walter Smith allowed him to make a loan switch to Blackpool which the Championship outfit made permanent that summer for just £500,000. The only challenge to his signature came from Barnsley.

Adam was surplus to requirements and his nine years in Glasgow had yielded just 86 appearances.

By his final season abuse from the stands meant his father Charlie Snr could no longer bring himself to attend home matches.

How times have changed. The rejuvenated Scotland international returns to Ibrox tonight with his head held high as part of Kenny Dalglish’s squad for the friendly against the SPL champions.

Having relaunched his career with Blackpool, Adam got his dream move to Anfield this summer for an initial fee of £6.75million.

The 25-year-old has quickly established himself at Anfield and was Liverpool’s outstanding performer in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Manchester United. Adam would be forgiven for celebrating the fact he has proved his doubters north of the border wrong. However, he bears no grudges and insists his time spent in Glasgow helped make him the player he is today.

“Going back to Ibrox is one to look forward to for me,” he said. “I have a lot of good memories from my time there. Playing in the big games like the Old Firm matches, Champions League and UEFA Cup, and making my debut as a youngster.

“I will enjoy going back and hopefully I will get the opportunity to step back onto the pitch.

“It will be my first time back and sometimes you don’t get a chance to go back to your old clubs. I’m glad the two clubs have managed to get a friendly on. Rangers was a great grounding for me. That is where my education as a footballer was.”

Dundee-born Adam joined Rangers on his 15th birthday in 2004 and was handed his debut by Alex McLeish against Livingston in April 2004.

Spells on loan at Ross County and St Mirren followed before he returned to Ibrox in the summer of 2006 and finally established himself as a first team regular during Paul Le Guen’s shortlived reign. Adam was crowned Rangers’ Young Player of the Year and Smith handed him a new five-year contract in 2007 but he struggled to hold down a place in 2008/09.

He was played out of position on the left flank and with competition from the likes of Pedro Mendes, Kevin Thomson, Maurice Edu, Barry Ferguson and Steven Davis he found himself out of favour. His final appearance came in December 2008 when he was substituted during a 1-0 home defeat by Celtic in front of 50,000.

Six weeks later he went to Blackpool and was sent off on his debut against Doncaster Rovers in front of 7,000 at Bloomfield Road.

Rangers pocketed more cash this summer courtesy of the 10% sell-on clause they negotiated with Blackpool when they sold Adam to the Seasiders.

“I had some great times at Rangers but also some hard times and that was with not playing which was a difficult period,” Adam said.

“I’m glad I started there and the coaches I had over the years helped me to progress to where I am today. That’s the way it goes sometimes and football changes so much nowadays.

“Now I am glad I am at a big club like Liverpool and I am enjoying my time.”

Rangers were looking for prestigious friendlies following their early exit from European competition this season and Liverpool gladly accepted the invitation. With the depth of talent at Dalglish’s disposal this season, the Reds boss has plenty of players in need of some game time.

Ally McCoist’s men are seven points clear at the top of the SPL and Adam expects them to provide a tough examination.

The last time the clubs met in August 2008 Adam, whose younger brother Grant is a goalkeeper on Rangers’ books, was on the losing side as the Reds cruised to a 4-0 friendly win at Ibrox.

“I still have some people there I know and I keep a look out for their results but my main concern now is Liverpool,” he said.

“I want to do as well as I can for this club and try and win trophies and be successful. We will get a good test on Tuesday. They have got some good players, they are seven points clear but that can change at any time with the Old Firm.

“It’s a good opportunity for us to play someone different. We want to get back in the Champions League so this game will be a good test for us.”

Adam believes they are similarities between the club where he started his career and where he’s now flourishing.

“Rangers obviously get 50,000 supporters for home games and the Liverpool fans are also so passionate and fanatical about their club,” he said. “Both are top clubs but for me Liverpool is massive and is one of the biggest clubs in the world, the same as Rangers.

“The fans will hopefully enjoy it and they will turn out in their numbers. It is a real honour for me to be a Liverpool player, I wouldn’t ever swap anything about being here and hopefully I can be here for a number of years and do really well.”