Philippe Clement shares Rangers appeal verdict after Jose Cifuentes red card v Dundee
Philippe Clement has revealed that Rangers will take their time when deciding whether or not to appeal Jose Cifuentes' red card against Dundee.
Rangers were forced to play the second half of their 3-1 win on Saturday 9 December with 10 men after the Ecuadorian midfielder saw red in first-half injury time for what was adjudged by VAR to be a stamp on Amadou Bakoyoko.
The 24-year-old will miss the Light Blues' Viaplay Cup final against Aberdeen through suspension next Sunday (17 December), but Clement has revealed that the Gers will consider the possibility of appealing the controversial decision.
As quoted by the Daily Record (9 December) he said: "I’ve not seen the images back. Jose told me he lost the ball and wanted to win it back. He wanted to block the ball but the other guy is a split second faster and tackles through the ball.
"There's contact. Jose tries to avoid it, he didn’t go through it, so I want to see things back to have a clear and good opinion so we can make an assessment in the next few days.
"I am a glass-half-full man, I don’t want to be a half-empty guy. I don’t want to look at the problems, I need to find solutions. It has not been easy, we had a few in the first few weeks. The players are giving me good solutions.”
May as well appeal
With the biggest game of Rangers' season around the corner at Hampden Park next weekend, the Light Blues will need their best players fit and ready to make an impact against Aberdeen. If Clement can't call upon Cifuentes it will be a huge blow to the Gers.
The Ecuador international hasn't been perfect since arriving in Glasgow, but Clement doesn't have many options currently at his disposal and if he is available the 24-year-old will almost certainly start the cup final.
His challenge at Ibrox on Saturday wasn't perfectly timed and he certainly did catch Bakoyoko high on his leg, but there is no malicious intent in the challenge and he hasn't aimed to harm the Dundee man with the tackle.
There is a very good chance that this red card could be overturned as a result of the appeal if Rangers opt to take that action and with such a big game only a matter of days away, Clement must surely question this decision.