Rangers have been warned not to make the same mistake as one of Philippe Clement’s previous clubs.
Genk chief Peter Croonen admits he still regrets losing the Belgian coach in 2019.
The 49-year-old left for Club Brugge just weeks after leading Genk to the title in Belgium having only spent 18 months at the club.
And it’s a move that Croonen says haunts him and the team to this day.
Clement would go on to win three more titles in his homeland before moving on to Ligue 1 giants Monaco.
Furthermore, Croonen has informed the Ibrox club that they wish to keep Clement in Glasgow for as long as possible, given that Rangers are now headed in the correct direction under his leadership.
The longer Rangers can keep Phillipe, the better for them,” Croonen stated to the Daily Record. He has demonstrated his ability to sustain performance across multiple seasons.
“His departure following that first title is the single aspect of his appointment at Genk that I regret. Despite our requests for him to stay, he chose to depart.
The seven-point lead that Celtic had at Ibrox before Clement took charge has been quickly erased.
And with Rangers now on the right trajectory under Clement’s watch, Croonen has told the Ibrox club they want to keep him in Glasgow for as long as possible
Croonen told the Daily Record: “The longer Rangers can keep Phillipe the better for them. He has proven that he can repeat success over several seasons.
“The only thing that I regret about appointing him at Genk was that he left us after that first title. We asked him to stay but he decided to leave.”
Clement has made short work of wiping out Celtic’s seven-point advantage they held when he took over the role at Ibrox.
Rangers now lead the Premiership standings by two points, and should they overcome Hearts on Saturday, they might close the difference to five points before Celtic’s next game.
When asked if he was taken aback by Clement’s accomplishments in a brief period of time, Croonen replied, “Not at all. Looking at Philippe’s past, you can see that in his second season leading the team, he turned us into champions.
“He moved to Brugge and turned them into three-time champions. As a result, he is among the few head coaches in Belgian football history to have won four straight titles with two separate teams.
If I’m being completely honest, I think we only participated in the Champions League to a significant amount.
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