Daily Record reporter reveals that Clement has signed his death warrant over disease riddled club

Last week Scott McDermott was explaining to Daily Record readers why it was the smart move, joined up thinking to stick with Phil Clement as manager.

Despite the defeats and humiliations as Celtic trashed the lie of being the World’s Most Successful Club the loyal bears had to stick with A Proper Football Manager.

Why?

Because of his incredible achievements in the Europa League coupled with his ability to discover and develop Jefte, Hamza Igamane and Clinton Nsiala into £100m of EPL talent to rebuild the club.

Alas patience is in short supply among the bears, after losing to Queens Park it turns out that there is a disease inside Ibrox that will be purged with a P45 and a one way Easyjet flight to Brussels Charleroi.

This week in the Record McDermott explains:

Someone at Rangers really ought to have banned the Belgian from talking about ‘shots on target’ after losing to a team who drew with East Kilbride in the Challenge Cup the previous week. And for Clement to shrug off the suggestion of a season with no trophies by saying other managers have done the same? He signed his own death warrant in the eyes of the supporters.

Because that really got to the crux of the matter. And something I’ve banged on about regularly for the last four years. With that statement, Clement confirmed that at Rangers it’s now acceptable to be second best in this city. That’s a disease that has riddled this club for too long.

If the board decides not to make a change, what message does that send out to players – never mind fans – moving forward? They’re supposed to be trying to build a winning machine. But if prospects like Hamza Igamane, Jefte, Nico Raskin or Bailey Rice think they can lose to Queen’s Park and there will be no consequences – they’ll NEVER become serial trophy lifters.

Sunday’s defeat crossed a line. Supporters have had enough and will start voting with their feet. Crowds are dwindling already. Season ticket renewal forms are out in two months’ time. But aside from that, it’s the humiliation of it all. These fans have suffered too much pain. They’re being laughed at by their rivals across the city.

By losing at the weekend, they effectively gift-wrapped yet another Treble for Celtic. It will be their SIXTH in just nine seasons. That can’t go on. It’s unforgivable.

Those words sound like the angry ramblings of a fan that has reported on enough Celtic trebles to last a lifetime.

Because Dave Murray delivered a couple of trebles of his own with the use of players that his club couldn’t afford without scamming HMRC doesn’t mean that teams in blue playing from Ibrox can expect trebles or trophies in future.

HMRC  have put their foot down on those scams.

It costs a small fortune to run Ibrox and Murray Park, putting out a team isn’t cheap with Jack Butland, James Tavernier, Ben Davies, Tom Lawrence, Danilo and Cyriel Dessers costing around £2m a month to pay.

That takes a lot of Season Tickets, pies and quality Castore gear to fund.

When you add in the expectations of supporters fuelled by the delusions of the media that can’t accept that 2012 actually happened it creates a toxic mix, or the poison that is sinking the Tribute Act founded by Charles Green.

When Clement gets his pay off the problems and issues will simply transfer onto the brogues and blazer of the next man fawned over simply for climbing the marble staircase and looking like a Proper Football Manager for those unable to accept the realities of paying Income Tax, National Insurance and life in 2025.

Philippe Clement signed his own Rangers death warrant and now this disease MUST be purged | @scottmcdermott8 https://t.co/9tKj8n0fGf pic.twitter.com/NVYchj9Kw3

— Daily Record Sport (@Record_Sport) February 12, 2025

On February 5 Record readers were told:

It was only a couple of months ago, some supporters wanted him out the door. And when Rangers effectively ruled themselves out of the title race by shipping points in Paisley and Motherwell, of course he was under scrutiny. But if this club is genuinely serious now about dealing in bigger pictures, Clement should probably be held on to for as long as possible.

Which other Rangers manager has been forced to cut the wage bill, shop for bargain buys and play youngsters from the academy? Can you imagine a Smith, a Souness or a Gerrard buying into that? AND being told to deliver success at the same time.

A few gaffers over the years have obviously had to cut their cloth accordingly, with Alex McLeish one that sticks out. But he started with a multi-talented squad and the free transfers he was able to pick up were of Dado Prso and Jean-Alain Boumsong’s ilk.

That can’t be compared to Clement’s current situation. In the last 30 years, nothing has come close. This season’s title has gone and – irrespective of what cash he might get to play with in the summer – he’ll be expected to challenge Celtic for it next time.

That’s par for the course here and he knows that. But the fact that Clement has got this squad into the last-16 of the Europa League is a remarkable feat and one which shouldn’t be under-estimated.

He’s taken plenty of flak since he arrived in Glasgow. And he’s still under pressure to deliver. But given the restraints he’s currently working under?

It might be time for the Rangers supporters not to moan about the players they haven’t got. And instead appreciate the manager they have.