The countdown is on for Philippe Clement and his team, but Davie Robertson hopes the Belgian manager is given enough time to turn things around at Rangers.
With just three days until their Premiership campaign kicks off at Tynecastle, Rangers fans will soon see if their team is as ill-prepared as feared. A summer of two draws, three defeats, and ten goals conceded has set off alarm bells among supporters already unsettled by the board’s Copland Road construction fiasco.
Clement’s recent comments, particularly about the changing financial situation since his hiring in October, have fueled speculation among fans about how long he’ll endure the chaos at Ibrox. Even if he stays, a quick fix seems unlikely, as the team is realistically at least five players short of a title challenge. This could put Clement in the line of fire from disgruntled fans.
Robertson urges fans to remember Clement’s achievements last season before injuries derailed the club’s trophy aspirations. The nine-in-a-row legend told Record Sport: “Regardless of what happens, the manager has to be given time. You just can’t keep changing managers.
“Rangers’ tradition has been stability in the manager’s office – there have only been 19 men in 152 years. Whatever happens, Clement needs to be given the time and support to rebuild the team himself.
“Hopefully, that’s what he gets. At the start of the season, you have to be as optimistic as you can because anything is possible. No one expected him to produce what he did when he came in. Winning the League Cup, beating Betis away, getting the team back in the title race – that all showed he was capable of working wonders with not a lot.
“Injuries kicked in during the second half of the season, and now Rangers lack the belief that Celtic seem to have in abundance. The only way to change that is to get quality players in quickly. Otherwise, it could be a tough season.”
While a dark cloud hovers over the Ibrox construction site, Celtic have returned from their US break feeling confident, having secured wins over Manchester City and Chelsea.
Robertson acknowledges it may take some time before the outlook at Rangers improves. He said: “There is a lot of negativity around Rangers right now, not helped by Celtic’s results in America and their big signings like Kasper Schmeichel.
“Clement has a bigger job than he first realised. Supporters would have expected some big names by now, but it’s been slow. Vaclav Cerny came in last week, and he has a decent reputation, but more arrivals were expected.
“There’s still a lot of speculation about players leaving too. Clement showed last year he could do well with the squad he inherited from Michael Beale.
“But the players he’s trying to move out aren’t his type. Players like Cantwell and Goldson aren’t the right fit. It will take time for him to put his stamp on the team. He’s going to have to move players on before bringing new ones in, which is difficult at this time of the season.”
Any notion of treating this season as transitional is likely to be rejected by fans, especially since Celtic could match Rangers’ record of 55 league titles with four in a row. Robertson added: “Talking like that is unacceptable to supporters.
“I know from my time at Ibrox, you simply have to win every game. That’s the mentality required. When Clement came in, he won the League Cup – an incredible achievement. He’ll need to work some miracles again this season.”