Rangers boss Philippe Clement talks offers he turned down, the style of play he will implement to try to ‘win everything’ at Rangers; 49-year-old also discusses catching Celtic, transfers and more after replacing Michael Beale and is confident he will be given time to succeed in Glasgow
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In an exclusive interview Philippe Clement talks about turning down other offers for Rangers, his style of play, wanting to win everything, being given time to succeed and much more.
New Rangers manager Philippe Clement says he wants to ‘win everything’ with the club and explained how he intends to close the gap to Celtic with dominant football at Ibrox.
Speaking exclusively to Sky Sports, the Belgian revealed he turned down more financially lucrative offers to join Rangers, such is his desire to bring success back to the club.
Clement replaced Michael Beale, who was sacked after just 10 months in charge, and is confident he will be given the time needed to implement his ideas and methods.
In a wide-ranging interview, Clement also discussed potential transfer plans for January and how he will maximise the quality of the current squad this season.
Ahead of his first game in charge, at home to Hibernian on Saturday in a 3pm kick-off, which you can follow on the Sky Sports website and app, read on to hear the new Rangers boss outline his ambitions…
Image: Philippe Clement is the new Rangers boss after signing a deal until 2027
Why Rangers? Why is it the right option for you at this stage in your career?
The last couple of weeks, the last couple of months I spoke with several clubs in Europe and also outside of Europe and because of the talks we had, this felt like the best project. The thing I was looking for was a club with a lot of passion and a real football club with a lot of fans, but also the people I met from the club were really passionate about the club. They also wanted to change things in the way I see how you need to work at a football club. So, our ideas were really aligned.
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What was the process like? Graeme Souness was involved, did you meet him?
It’s true Graeme was there at the first talks to go in-depth about football, about details, about the team, about the fans and about what people expect. Later on, there were also several other people from the club involved in the process.
It was interesting for me to get much more information about the club. I spoke also with Thomas Buffel, who was a long-time player here and knows the club really well. I gathered enough information to make a really good decision.
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Kris Boyd praises the involvement of Graeme Souness in the appointment of the new Rangers manager Philippe Clement
There were reports of offers from Saudi Arabia, did you have other options?
There were several concrete options that were financially better, but that is not the important thing for me. I want a good project and to build something together with the people of the club, a long-term project that you can make better.
You posted on social media that you have already started work, watching footage of previous games. You’ve met the players now, so what have you learned about this team?
I cannot reveal all the details because all my colleagues will be watching this.
There are things to improve but there’s also a lot of potential.
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Of course, when you step into a project you see there are things that you can make better and that there is potential to grow. For me it is clear, with this team we can grow. With this club we can grow in the months and years ahead.
However, I also know it will be hard work. Day by day, making the story better with players and with staff, and with our way of working. All these things, if you make this process really good, we will make big steps in a few months but also, it will take time.
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Rangers name Philippe Clement as the club’s new men’s first-team manager on a deal until 2027 as he succeeds Michael Beale at Ibrox
How do you pick the confidence of the players up? Does this job require big changes or just small tweaks?
If you make major changes directly you make people more nervous than they are already.
So, we need to do things step by step.
If I want to implement all my football philosophies in five days, it is impossible. Not here and also not at other clubs before either.
At the end, it is always the results of a strong team scoring a lot of goals, playing attractive dominant football. They are the things people want to see here so I know we will get there. I see the potential in the players who are here. I have confidence in that and it’s about putting the confidence in the players and step by step growing together.
How would you describe you style of play?
It’s always been a dominant style of play. Also, Waasland-Beveren, the first team I started with was a relegation team, but we played dominant football and we got results with that style.
It’s something I really want, to take charge of the game. I want to create but out of good organisation. But at the end, it is all about winning.
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However, my style is towards creating chances, creating spaces for ourselves and with a lot of changing of the positions of the players. For that you need a lot of movement with different players together.
It’s about timing and it’s about working together well. So, it needs time to implement all these things.
You are the fourth manager in two years at Rangers. Based on the talks you’ve had, how confident are you that you get the time to succeed in the way you want to?
I am confident about that. I’ve seen serious people who know that they want to find a manager, and they made a really long process talking with a lot of coaches also to make the right choice.
They know what they are getting into the building. We were really clear about that on both sides.
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It’s now time for me to focus on the team and making the team better.
Also, it’s very important to get the synergy between the team and the fans better again.
It’s important we give the fans what they want but also that the fans give their energy and their positivity towards the team because the team needs it.
What do you know about the pressure and scrutiny of Glasgow as a footballing city?
I know about it. I spoke with Thomas Buffel about it.
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Thomas Buffel reflects on his experiences of playing under Philippe Clement, explains what his former club Rangers can expect and why he is a good fit for the club
I’ve been a long time in football, and it is also the thing I love.
In Bruges it was also like this. The only goal is to become champions, and after being champions, you have to become champions again. And after being champions for a second time, you have to be champions for a third time.
It’s who I am. Nobody can put more pressure on me than myself.
I want to win every game and have every day perfect. I want the next day to be better than the day before. That’s who I am and that is why I love this job.
That is also why I love this challenge.
You arrive with the team seven points behind Celtic very early in the season. There’s still a League Cup semi-final as well. How important are all the competitions and how confident are you that you can bridge that seven-point gap?
Firstly, I want to win everything. You want to win every competition you play.
Secondly, regarding the gap [to Celtic], it’s important we focus on ourselves and important we focus on what we have to do to become better, get more points, play better football, get the fans behind the team and get a better dynamic again.
Image: Philippe Clement's first match as Rangers boss is against Hibernian on Saturday
It’s important to not look too far ahead about what could happen in six months. It’s about now, the next weeks and the next months. Week by week we need to build the story.
There will be some bumps on the way, but we need to stay confident and to grow more with the team. We need to give everyone a clear idea of what they have to do on the pitch, to help them do the right things and grow as a team.
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For me, it is like a marathon. We can focus on the seven-point gap and try to sprint now really hard and lose our legs. Or we can be focussed on the guy in front of us who is running and try to go at better pace, get a good tempo to try and make this comeback during the season.
What have you been told about budgets? Is there scope to bring your own players here in January?
Of course, there have been talks about it, but they are talks that stay between me and the board.
The first thing that is important now is for me and my staff to look at the squad, get an overview of what we think is necessary or not. Are there players that can grow or not?
I hope that there a few very positive surprises for the club.
What can you tell us about your backroom staff? Will you look to implement someone who has been in Scottish football or at this club before?
For sure. It is an important thing for me.
Not only somebody who has been in Scottish football because you also have analysts to watch games and I watch games myself, but also to have a bridge with the academy.
That’s a very important point for me also.
Image: Clement spoke exclusively to Sky Sports in his first media interview since joining Rangers
To have somebody who knows the city, knows the players and who knows everything about the club.
We have interim staff now together with us so that we can look at the next couple of weeks.
If we keep this way of working, or get other people in, or keep the same people, we have freedom to decide and look at what is best for the club.
What’s your message to the Rangers fans?
I’m really hungry to give this club success again.
I’ve been here now one day but I also see players who want to do that too.
What the players need is strong support that the fans can give. They also need positivity in moments in the game that are not working, to push them in a positive way towards scoring goals and staying sharp, reacting in a good way to losing a ball.
If we can use the fans in a good way, if it is a good story together, it can give the players so much energy.
I know and understand that fans can be sometimes frustrated when things don’t go the way they expect before the game, but they also need to understand how much power they have to push the team over that point in a game also.
That’s something I want to see in the next couple of weeks.
Sourse: skysports.com
