Hibernian coaches rage at Philippe Clement incident in 4-0 loss v Rangers – BBC Sport journalist
The Hibernian dugout were angered by Philippe Clement’s decision to play a ball that did not go out of play in their meeting with Rangers, according to BBC Sport journalist Martin Dowden.
The Gers won the Scottish Premiership clash at Ibrox on Saturday (21 October) 4-0 thanks to goals from Abdallah Sima (two), Nicolas Raskin and Cyriel Dessers.
But the opposing coaches were angered by the new Rangers manager, who stepped onto the pitch to touch the ball in the first half.
“Clement hogged the touchline throughout, encouraging his players even when things weren’t coming off,” Dowden wrote for BBC Sport (21 October).
“He even seemed to interfere with play on the pitch early on, much to the ire of the opposition dugout, such was his enthusiasm.”
Fuming
The Hibs dugout were clearly unhappy at the decision from Clement to interfere with play, and rightly so. Whether it would have changed the result at Ibrox remains unknown, but it certainly could have had a major impact on the home players.
The atmosphere among the Ibrox faithful might have also changed if their new manager had been shown a red card in his first match in charge.
But nobody associated with the Gers will care about the incident anymore, with further progress under Clement all that matters now.
The new man in the dugout has set the standard very high, and he will want his players to produce another performance like that in their next match.
That will, however, be a much more difficult challenge, with the Gers travelling to Sparta Prague for a Europa League group stage clash on Thursday (26 October). The European fixture will definitely allow the new Rangers manager to see where his squad are truly at.
In other Rangers news, Clement has already taken a big risk at his new club as a behind-the-scenes Ibrox decision is made.