Rangers plan massive renovation as Philippe Clement claims Celtic gap and says departments must make good decisions.
Philippe Clement predicts a “big” overhaul at Rangers this summer, citing a lengthy injury list. With a 2-1 defeat on Saturday, the Gers fell six points behind Premiership leaders and title contenders Celtic. Midfielder John Lundstram was sent off. John Souttar, Tom Lawrence, and Dujon Sterling suffered injuries at Celtic Park, joining Connor Goldson, Leon Balogun, Lundstram (suspended), Oscar Cortes, Rabbi Matondo, Abdallah Sima, Danilo, and Bailey Rice on the injured list for Rangers’ penultimate league game of the season against Dundee at Ibrox on Tuesday.
Rangers have suffered three defeats and a draw in four games against Celtic this season, with Clement in charge for the last three, and will face the Hoops in the Scottish Cup final on May 25, with a number of players, including Lundstram, Borna Barisic, Kemar Roofe, Ryan Jack, Balogun, and John McLaughlin, set to be out of contract. The Belgian manager thinks there is “not a big gap” between the two Glasgow giants, but promises significant improvements on and off the pitch by next season.
Rangers have suffered three defeats and a draw in four games against Celtic this season, with Clement in charge for the last three, and will face the Hoops in the Scottish Cup final on May 25, with a number of players, including Lundstram, Borna Barisic, Kemar Roofe, Ryan Jack, Balogun, and John McLaughlin, set to be out of contract. The Belgian manager thinks there is “not a big gap” between the two Glasgow giants, but promises significant improvements on and off the pitch by next season.
“We will be losing 11 players tomorrow, which is a significant adjustment for next season. We need to strengthen the foundation of the house. There will be a squad turnaround, as seen by all of the contract expirations and possibly others. It will be a large one, requiring extensive rebuilding. You want to maintain the fundamentals of this season. You don’t want to start from scratch. So we need to strike a balance and bring assets and experience in if experience is leaving the building.”The club knows.
The club understands how important it is to do so. We’re working hard on it, and I see the recruitment team is really busy finding good profiles for next season, but the next three games are critical. But it’s not just recruitment; we need to make excellent decisions in all aspects because we can’t have so many injuries. So we need to rebuild something there. There are a few things that need to be changed, but I’d rather preserve them and improve the building. Maybe it was preferable not to wait until the conclusion of the season to make decisions based on that (injury tale), but you give people opportunities.”
Clement has a message for disillusioned Rangers fans who struggle to sustain belief in the Scottish Cup going to Ibrox. He said: “We are going to fight really hard to get a result. It’s about margins; we need to take them and stick with 11 guys, which helps. It’s not like we lost the last few games 4-0, 3-0, or whatever; the margins were narrow even with ten men. So we’re going to work incredibly hard not only for the cup final, but also for the last two league games, and we’re counting on the fans to assist the club get through the tough times.” Related
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