Chris Sutton makes ‘cranky’ Philippe Clement admission ahead of Rangers Old Firm clash v Celtic
Chris Sutton has admitted that the battle between Rangers boss Philippe Clement and Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will be “one to watch” at Parkhead.
The Light Blues make the trip across Glasgow on Saturday (11 May) as they look to keep their Premiership title hopes alive and the meeting has an extra element of spice following a war of words between the managers.
Rodgers admitted that his side are looking to have fun against their Old Firm rivals, much to the frustration of Clement who Sutton has labelled “cranky” ahead of the season-defining derby.
Speaking on It’s All Kicking Off (9 May, 21:30) he said: “It’s a difficult one to call. Rangers will be direct with runners in behind, they play that way under Clement.
“Clement’s done a brilliant job to get them to this stage, but the fact that they were in front and have let it slip, that’s why he’s getting a bit cranky and Brendan has got under his skin. That will be one to watch as well.”
Will Rangers and Philippe Clement beat Brendan Rodgers and Celtic to the title?
The Old Firm derby doesn’t need any added needle ahead of kick-off but it is good to see two managers already firing shots at one another in the lead-up to the game because that is how this fixture is meant to be played.
Not only is this a massive grudge match, but it also has the potential to be campaign-defining for both teams. It is only natural that tensions in both dugouts would be raised slightly in the build-up to kick-off at Ibrox.
Hopefully, both sides will do their talking on the pitch and Clement can use Rodgers’ words to inspire his team ahead of the game. A famous win at Parkhead would fire the Light Blues right back into the Premiership title race.
Whether or not Clement is truly “cranky” as Sutton suggests, or just frustrated by his side’s displays in recent weeks remains to be seen. But they can easily banish that recent run of form with a win on Saturday.
In other Rangers news, Clement has been tipped to hand Ben Davies a rare start for the Gers’ Old Firm showdown with Celtic
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