Philippe Clement Rangers presser in full as boss talks Belgium job, injuries and singles out star for praise
Yesterday at 03:00 PM
Philippe Clement has addressed the speculation linking him with the Belgium job.
The Rangers manager was once again quizzed on his future in Glasgow as he met the media this afternoon.
Despite his decision to commit his future at Ibrox only in August, jobs in his homeland including the national team as well as Anderlecht continue to involve his name.
Clement distanced himself from other jobs recently by insisting he sees a project with Gers and a long-term future.
Yet that has not prevented the press from continuously asking the question.
Once again the 50-year-old brushed off the query as he was also grilled on injuries ahead of Dundee United this weekend, Nils Koppen’s promotion to becoming technical director and squad rotation.
Here is all Clement had to say.
International break ups and downs
Yeah, one big one with Nana [Kasanwirjo], what everybody knows probably. So, we’re for the moment in contact with Feyenoord about that. He’s going to have an appointment with a surgeon today, so we will have more news probably during the weekends. But it’s for sure a longer-term injury, and it’s now seeing what’s the precise problem and talking with Feyenoord where to make the operation, where to make the rehab, so we’re in negotiations with everybody.
Hard to take?
I don’t know if you saw the images, how it happened, so it’s, you cannot imagine that you have a severe injury in an action like that, but it’s football. It’s not only here, it’s in a lot of clubs, but it’s really hard because he was adapting really well to the club, to the mentality here. He showed good things in the games, in the trainings, and he was showing the right quality for Rangers, so it’s a big blow for all of us.
Everyone else came back okay?
Yes, Ross [McCausland] had a problem with his foot, but he’s better now, so that’s positive, and the rest of the internationals can back up and they had also a good period, so John Souttar played two really impressive games again. I think everybody’s seeing he’s making really big steps forward for the last couple of months in every sense of football, and as a personality also, so it’s a really good thing for the club and for all of us.
Connor Barron had a really good experience with the national team also, with all the experienced guys being in that environment, learning out of that.
Of course, he wants to get minutes, but those steps will be made in the near future, for sure. Ianis [Hagi] played also 90 minutes, which was also an important thing for us. Last time he went to the national team, he almost didn’t play, so that was a little bit of a waste of time. And Nedim [Bajrami] and Vaclav [Cerny] both played the two games, and they played well, and they came back home.
Valuable time with non-internationals
It’s always important to work with them as individuals. Of course, as a team, it’s difficult when you miss so many players, but we played also a friendly game last week, with mostly the players who didn’t get so many minutes, or players who came out of injury, so that was important for them also to get minutes. So it’s always a good period, every day is a good period, because we want to make the players better.
How much do you want to see a performance from the players tomorrow as well?
Yeah, we want both, of course. That was a disappointment after the Hearts game also, where you play a good first-half, where you create a lot of chances, you don’t give away almost anything, only one backward pass from John, where Jack came out.
But in the second half, our level went down, and that’s not what I want to see. I want to see that we keep on pushing for the second goal, and that we make the difference earlier in the game, that you don’t need to fight until the last second, that the other team stays in the game. So that we need to improve in this game.
How are Ridvan, Cortes and Matondo?
Ridvan is training with the team again, he will be in the selection tomorrow. So he’s doing well, he played also one half last week in that friendly game. Rabbu trains and played also the game, the friendly game, but got a kick there so he has a small problem, not a big problem, but he will not be fit for the weekend. And very positive news, Oscar will be back next week to train with the team. So I’m really happy about that also.
Was it Kasanwirjo’s knee?
Yeah, I can confirm that. But I cannot confirm what is the precise injury, because the surgeon first needs to look at it. Because there are a little bit different opinions, so we need to be precise and correct.
Nils Koppen this week appointed technical director, what’s your take on that?
That it’s important that there can be decisions made. It’s been a strange period last couple of months, where there has been a kind of vacuum in the club in that way, with people stepping in, in the interim role, and helping in that way. And also looking for a new chairman, new CEO, helping in the club. But it’s clear now also with Creag leaving, we needed also somebody to make decisions on the short term, not only on the long term.
So Nils will take over several responsibilities that Creag had. But that was also a role that he was already doing in a way, together with me, about the short term, things to change in the club and to do in the club. So there’s always a lot of things to do. With staff, with infrastructure, with a lot of things. So it’s positive, there’s clarity in that way now.
Were you involved in the decision-making for his appointment?
No, I was not involved in that. That’s the board, like I’m not involved with who will be the CEO or the chairman, that’s also not my role to do. I’m here for the sporting side.
Will that free you up for other issues?
Yes, for sure. It’s been a very intense period, still now. There’s a lot of things to do, but it’s good that there’s clarity about that and that everybody has a clear role. There’s some things that came on my plate the last couple of months that don’t need to come on the plate of a manager in any club in the world. So in that way, it will help for sure myself.
You’ve been linked to the Belgian manager’s position. What do you make of those links?
I think a few weeks ago you were here also in the press conference. I hope you remember what I said there. I don’t want to go into rumours about players, so I’m not going to go into rumours about those things. But I was really clear that I said that I engaged myself for the long term to Rangers and I’m not going to change my mind on that. So I think it’s very clear. I hope now, in the future, if something else comes, that you don’t come with this question anymore.
You talked about John Souttar and how impressive he was during the week?
He showed that in training and in games also. But John is one of the boys who learns a lot because he’s so hungry to become better. And he’s one of the examples in that way. Staying after training, working on his weaker points. I call it always working points instead of weaker points to work on that to become better and better and better. And that’s what we’ve seen in this past year. He was not that kind of player one year ago.
And if he continues like this with the same mentality, which I don’t have any doubt about, he will only grow in the next couple of years also. But it’s important also that he gets this praise that he gets now. In Scotland, it will help his confidence also. And to become a better and better player. I think it’s good for age and it’s good for Scottish football.
How tough will it be rotating at right-back given the Kasanwirjo injury?
Yeah, of course. Nana played right-back, left-back, centre-back also. So it’s in three positions you lose a player. So that’s a blow. That’s something to think about towards January also and we need to see which fronts we have to solve it in that way.
