Clement Crumbling: Rangers Boss Can’t Even Say ‘Celtic’ as Pressure Mounts

Since his recent humiliation at Celtic Park, Philippe Clement has had to work extra hard to win over the Rangers fan base.
Ten days after enraged fans confronted him outside Ibrox, Clement is still attempting to justify his team’s appalling performance. Clement has managed five Glasgow derbies since taking over at Ibrox, and he has a dismal record of four losses and one draw. That draw, too? It was only made possible by a last-second heroic save that prevented Rangers from losing to Celtic once more.

Clement went to an event to have a direct conversation with Rangers supporters in an effort to quell the ruckus. Throughout the evening, Clement attempted to justify his team’s current downward trajectory, offering up a series of excuses and, unsurprisingly, struggling to even utter the word Celtic.

At Ibrox, it’s getting a little habit; nobody can even bring themselves to mention the club’s name, as if our dominance has traumatised them.

Clement voiced his displeasure and offered his patience-based turnaround strategy, saying, “It’s about working hard with the team and making them gel to create connections.” For over a year, the residents on the opposite side of town have been practicing and assembling their team. That they are now ahead is normal. That bothers me, and I want to quickly make a change in it. [RecordSport]

To start with, Clement, Celtic has been ahead for a considerable amount of time. They were ahead before Clement showed up, and they will remain ahead long after he leaves, barring some sort of football miracle. However, kudos to him for attempting to hide the flaws with the tired “it’s normal that they’re ahead” line of reasoning.

When he refers to “the other side of the town,” you can practically feel the hurt. Living in Glasgow must be difficult, as there is always a reminder of who is in charge. Even though Clement may say he despises Celtics’ success, the real problem here is that Rangers are declining under his leadership and there isn’t any indication that this will change.

Despite Clement’s best efforts to defend himself, the truth is that he finds it difficult to make his mark in the big games, particularly against the club he can’t seem to name. The sooner he and his team face reality, the better—for their sake, at least.