Rangers: Philippe Clement confirms Europa League squad, new signing left out
Rangers manager Philippe Clement has confirmed the names of the players who will be left out of his Europa League squad for the knockout stages.
The Gers manager filed his 25-man squad, which does not include homegrown players, to UEFA on Friday (2 February).
New signing Oscar Cortes, defender Leon Balogun and midfielder Kieran Dowell will all be left out of the squad.
Sam Lammers has also been omitted from the original list submitted in August following his exit, while Jose Cifuentes is also close to departing and therefore does not make the cut.
Ridvan Yilmaz, Fabio Silva and Mohamed Diomande have all been brought in.
“If you look at finding a balance, then Ridvan needs to be in,” Clement said, as quoted by the Daily Record [2 February].
“You need two full-backs – that was a problem in the first round. If there was a problem with Borna Barisic, we didn’t have any left-back.
“That was a difficult point on that European list that I have submitted today. Sam Lammers is out, so Fabio Silva is in. That’s logical. Cifu is probably out so Diomande comes in instead of him.
“Ridvan will come on the list so that means Leon Balogun, Kieran Dowell and Cortes cannot be on the list. That hurts me.
“We have been puzzling for hours with the staff these past few days and you always come to the same conclusions. You cannot keep the balance unless you make these changes.”
Philippe Clement makes toughest Rangers call yet
It may seem like he has been around for a lot longer, but Clement is still only four months into the Rangers job.
The Belgian coach has showed he is not afraid to make some big calls, while also standing firm on other decisions, during that time.
This is undoubtedly the toughest decision Clement has had to make in that time, and would have made for some awkward chatter behind the scenes.
Ultimately, it is the right call from the man in charge. Ridvan Yilmaz had to come in after strangely being omitted in the first place.
Diomande and Silva look as though they will play pivotal roles in the remainder of the campaign, which leaves Cortes as the odd man out.
Had the Lens loanee been aware of Clement’s plans beforehand, you have to wonder if he would have made the move.
Now that the squad has been finalised, excitement can start building for the last-16 tie, which will be here before we know it.
In other Rangers news, Tam McManus has commented on a “huge blow” that could potentially cost the Gers title success.
For more Rangers news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.