Philippe Clement frustration shared after what Rangers did v St Johnstone
Philippe Clement would have been frustrated with the performance that his Rangers team put in during the second half of their Scottish Premiership victory against St Johnstone on Sunday, Cammy Bell has said.
The Gers left Ibrox as 3-1 victors over the Saints and although they came out all guns blazing in the first half, the second was a far different story.
Clement’s men are now 15 points behind first-placed Celtic with their title hopes surely now down the drain.
Speaking on the Scottish Football Podcast (13 January), ex-Rangers man Bell shared his thoughts on the Belgian would have felt after the Ibrox outfit’s performance.
“Yes, there’s a real split in where the club is at the moment. Yes, you’ve got this group that are really unhappy with the board at the moment and the way things are going,” he said.
“You’ve got the other fans that are just wanting to back the team and try and get the best of what’s on the pitch at the moment.
“Does it affect you as a player? It certainly shouldn’t. “You’ve got to just concentrate on what you can affect and that is the game of football.
“Rangers dropped off in the second half, their performance was completely different from the first and it’s frustrating for the fans, frustrating for the manager because when you go 3-0 up after 25 minutes, you’ve surely got real confidence to go on and try and really batter a team and really put them under the cosh for the full 90 minutes.
“Rangers just stepped off their game and allowed St Johnston back into it. Performance-wise, second half, was disappointing.”
Philippe Clement needs to find a way to turn things around at Rangers
At the start of the 2024/25 season, it felt like Rangers were going to be able to challenge Celtic for the title.
However, after their summer signings failed to settle in and took their time to adapt to the rigours of the Scottish Premiership, it was clear that the Gers were no match for Brendan Rodgers’ men in the title race.
While players such as Hamza Igamane have since taken like ducks to water and have been the main reason behind the Ibrox outfit earning points, it feels like it’s too little too late.
The 15-point gap that now separates the teams is far too steep of a hill for the Gers to climb which means that their full attention must now turn to the Europa League and the Cup.
However, if they continue with this inconsistent form, it feels like they’ll not have a chance to rectify their mistakes and mount a better title charge next term.
In other Rangers news, David Edgar was left aghast by the “horrible” blunder he saw in the Gers’ game against St Johnstone.
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