When Celtic is not the focus and the media is talking about replacement managers at Ibrox, you know it's now only a matter of time....

Today at 07:25 AM

Ex-Players are also being wheeled out to stick the boot into the beleaguered Ibrox manager

The media is sharpening it’s knives when it comes to Philippe Clement’s position at Ibrox.

Replacements are already being discussed, and articles on other ex-players sticking the boot in are more and more frequent.

This pattern is all too familiar.

Yet, the SMSM has no problem facilitating the never ending cycle of regurgitating managers at Ibrox.

They are happy to feed the frenzy when it comes to this annual managerial shit-show that occurs with unerring regularity at Ibrox.

Late yesterday evening in the Record, Todd Cantwell was sticking the boot into Clement.

Cantwell, of course, is an ideal candidate for this kind of behaviour.

There is no shortage of bad blood between Clement and the Ibrox hero, turned villain.

Consequently, Cantwell will always be an easy go-to guy in the quest to get rid of the ailing Belgian manager.

And yesterday, in a veiled dig at Clement, he had this to say:

In terms of managers that I’ve had so far, he’s the most relatable. I say that because when I hear him speak it makes sense all the time.

When I spoke to him, we had complete clarity on the two positions that I could bring the best version of myself in. They are positions I’ve played in since I’ve been here so far the No 10 and as a left winger. The way the manager wants a left winger is very similar to how Daniel Farke wanted me at Norwich.

I’ve had three seasons in the Championship and I’ve got out of it every time, so I’ve been on the end of success. Behind closed doors I always think I can get the best out of people, so hopefully my experience is dripping off me.

It’s interesting how Cantwell always seems to suit his own narrative.

Last year, while at Ibrox, he was very quick to stick the boot into Daniel Farke, and the “hell” he endured at Norwich.

Yesterday, he’s on about how the German coach wanted him to play at the Canaries.

Overall, the article is a dig at Clement, and his “refusal” to play Cantwell in his favoured position.

Of course, Cantwell couldn’t resist being self-aggrandising with his, “so hopefully my experience is dripping off me” comment.

Asides from that piece, there was also an article on the chances of Kevin Muscat replacing Clement at Ibrox.

Muscat, who now coaches at Chines club Shanghai Port, was gutted at missing out on the Ibrox job this time last year.

But would he really want to give up his current role to come all the way to Europe to manage a club that is a complete basket case?

A club in complete disarray?

With a fanbase that is without doubt the most impatient on the planet.

Doubtless, all managers relish a challenge, but a challenge like this?

One that is virtually impossible, and a lose, lose, no matter what way you look at it.

Since 2012, Ibrox has become a graveyard for managers.

Many have taken the role, none have really succeeded at it.

Because to be a success at Ibrox, you basically have to win everything, only this will suffice.

But when you are up against a financial behemoth like Celtic, who can toy with you, as our club has consistently done over the last 12 years, then why would you want to take on a thankless, impossible role?

This is where that club is at right now.

And any manager worth his salt out there can see that.

Yes, there is no shortage of delusional coaches out there, filled with their own self importance and belief.

Who believe when they take on a role, they are destined for success.

What’s the point in being a football manager if you don’t have that kind of self-belief?

Clement believed it was a role he could take on, and for a while, he had people convinced he was the right man for the job.

But in the end, his over-arching self-belief was his downfall.

His title challenge crumbled after the “moral victory”.

Yet this season, that delusional self-belief continues, but it is now totally misplaced.

He has not managed to win one Glasgow Derby since he took over, and he now finds himself 6 points adrift in this campaign, behind Celtic and Aberdeen.

Not insurmountable by any stretch of the imagination, but when you compare his resources to ours, you get the real picture.

And that’s without even taking into account the title challenge Aberdeen are mounting, along with their unbeaten run to this point.

Jimmy Thelin is proving to be a very astute acquisition for the Pittodrie club.

However, as I said in the headline to this article, when talk of replacement managers arises in the media, you know it’s only a matter of time.

The depleted Ibrox hierarchy will cave eventually to fan pressure, in conjunction with the continuous negative press on Clement in the media.

Former Ibrox cheerleaders like Kris Boyd and Barry Ferguson will happily stick the boot in.

As I write, Ross Pilcher of the Record has just published an article discussing the fates of Gio van Bronckhorst and Michael Beale.

Basically discussing the end game, and what it will look like for Clement when it inevitably comes.

Clement is just another character in a soap opera that has the same script year in year out.

When he goes, it will just start all over again.

Then the next great pretender will step in, he’ll hit the ground running, and go on an unbeaten run.

He’ll be hailed by the media as the next great coming, the new messiah.

Then he’ll face Celtic.

He’ll lose or drop points to Celtic, and then the rot will start again.

Dropping points or losing to Celtic will sow that tiny seed of doubt, which will then bloom fully into a psychological barrier once Rodgers dishes out a hiding at Celtic Park.

And so, this time next year, they’ll find themselves at this same juncture again.

For me, the Ibrox club has two choices, continue on this ridiculous cycle of eat, sleep and repeat.

Or give a manager time.

We all know the latter will never happen.

Last night, I did an article on the possibility of Steven Gerrard returning.

They are clamouring for it to happen over there.

I said I would welcome it.

Because I can guarantee you, he would end up on the same scrapheap as his predecessors.

Gerrard has not proven himself as a football manager since leaving Ibrox.

He is under pressure in the Saudi Arabian backwater league he’s in.

It wouldn’t be Neil Lennon he’d be facing if the wishes of the Klanbase were granted.

It would be the man who owned him before he left for Leicester City.

So let the media apply the pressure for change at Ibrox.

Let the klanbase apply it too.

Every last bit of it plays into our hands, and they’re all too thick to realise it.

They say they need Real Raynjurz men, men who are staunch and protestant to the core.

Tell me the last time a religious belief won a league?

Never.

And the last Real Raynjurz man to do it has long since passed.

There are few, if any of them, left.

I guess they believe Gerrard fits that description, and that’s why they want him so desperately.

Let them live on their past glories, the glories of a dead club.

And let them believe that a guy who won the Covid title can be their deliverance.

It’s those kinds of beliefs that will continue to hold them back.

Some day it will dawn on them they aren’t what they used to be.

In fact, they never were.

Their attempts to emulate the dead club are the reason they find themselves where they are today.

A club with a mediocre squad, sitting in third place, with Dundee United breathing down their necks.

If they didn’t know their place, they know it now.

And it ain’t going to change anytime soon…

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