The one thing Philippe Clement has done with Rangers players that had been questioned
Yesterday at 07:30 AM
Rangers have probably left it too late to start to play domestically given the lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.
At one point, Philippe Clement’s squad rebuild seemed to have made matters worse, rather than better with serious doubts about whether or not silverware would return to the Ibrox trophy room anytime soon.
Calls for the manager to be sacked haven’t disappeared, but they have grown quieter with Rangers beginning to show that they have the right man in charge.
Philippe Clement proving doubters wrong with Rangers improvement
One thing that has been noticed has been the improvement of several players in the last month or so.
It’s a small sample size, however, the Europa League run is also an indication of the quality of football that they can play.
An important factor in this has been individuals stepping up a level or two which suggests that the murmurs about Clement not being able to improve players being something of a myth.
In Jefte, Nicolas Raskin, Mohamed Diomande, Vaclav Cerny, Hamza Igamane and John Souttar, the Gers boss has seen players who were either out the team or struggling for form become key.
James Tavernier is another who, after being dropped and looking like his days were numbered as first choice right-back, is now in his best form since the 2022 Europa League run, earning the praise of Clement in the process.
How Rangers can make more money from player trading model
Given the state of the squad that he inherited, Clement was never going to turn the corner overnight and get Rangers playing free flowing, attacking football.
A workman never blames their tools, but a manager can only work with the players they have at their disposal and then look to develop them.
There are still holes in the squad, however, they have been patched up by developing others.
Not only should this help in persuading other players to join Rangers, it could make those that are already at the club more valuable.
All Nils Koppen has to do now is clear out those who are taking up space on the wage bill and in the squad without offering anything in return.
