John Lundstram comments on Philippe Clement after Rangers beat Hearts ‘certain’ to spark reaction – Jonny McFarlane
John Lundstram’s glowing verdict on the arrival of Philippe Clement at Rangers is “certain” to get people talking, says Jonny McFarlane.
The journalist reacted on Twitter on 5 November after the Gers midfielder had spoken in the wake of the 3-1 Viaplay Cup semi-final victory over Hearts to call the Belgian a “breath of fresh air” and the mood around the club “so much better” since his appointment.
With Lundstram one of a number players apparently transformed since the sacking of Michael Beale and the his replacement by Clement McFarlane is “quite certain this will get people talking”.
Clement has won three from three in the SPFL, made the Viaplay Cup final, and picked up a decent point away in the Europa League since coming in, leaving Lundstram barely able explain the improvement the new manager had brought about apart from to say “he’s been so good, so good”.
The 29-year-old said Clement has done “lots and lots and lots of things behind the scenes” and had been “fantastic” with everyone, including staff and players outside of the first XI.
Onwards and upwards
It doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to hear the verdict on Clement and realise it reflects particularly unfavourably on Beale after the start to the season Rangers made.
Clement may have got slightly lucky in avoiding a limp defeat at home to Hearts last week, and if the 1-0 scoreline heading into the 90th minute had held then perhaps he would have been facing some of the same questions his predecessor ultimately couldn’t overcome.
But the delight on Lundstram’s face when asked to comment on his new manager would be hard to replicate if it wasn’t genuine and suggests the three-time Jupiler Pro League winner has made a major impact already.
There were precious few occasions as the Beale reign wore on where any players looked as happy, either off the pitch or on it, and while it is easy to trash the former QPR boss’ time in charge now he’s gone the evidence is starting to build against him.
Perhaps the charitable reaction would be to laud Clement for his positives rather than use it to highlight Beale’s negatives, but having taken a risk in bringing the former assistant back to Ibrox and been burned it looks like Rangers have gone a long way towards rectifying that mistake.
At the same time the former manager saw an uplift in results when he took over from Giovanni van Bronckhorst a year ago but still came unstuck against Celtic and in the Viaplay Cup final.
Clement still has to navigate those two major objectives before the turn of the year and the wheels could come off for him too if he fails, but signs are certainly positive so far.
In other Rangers news, a big-money Ibrox transfer may now never happen despite a pundit calling for it.