Philippe Clement has defended Rangers’ lacklustre finishing against Ross County claiming it was “not that bad”.
Rangers have drawn level on points with Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership but missed the opportunity to overtake their rivals on goal difference.
Whilst heading into the match Philippe Clement was clear that no-one at Ibrox was concentrating on the table, his team huffed and puffed but struggled to break the Ross County door down.
A quite astonishing 43 shots, 23 of which were on target, heralded three goals as the Gers ran out 3-1 winners over the Staggies, the OId Firm now tied on 61 points and +40GD.
Philippe Clement defends Rangers finishing
Speaking after the match, Philippe Clement has looked to defend his Rangers players amid much criticism of the finishing v Ross County.
Striker Cyriel Dessers netted a double in the match with John Souttar adding a late header, with the sentiment being that the club will regret their profligate finishing eventually this season.
It’s a situation which Clement was characteristically calm about come full-time as he analysed a series of missed opportunities.
“I think our finishing was also not that bad if you get 23 shots on goal,” said Clement. “But it’s about centimetres.
“We can do better in that way, we can still raise our level in that way, to be more precise, but those are the next steps to take.
“I think the team already took a lot of steps. That’s extra focus, focus that’s been there already, because it stays an important part of football.
“But you cannot ask much more of the players, where they are now, in the period we’ve been working together.”
Rangers fan finishing fears frayed since January
As Philippe Clement insists Rangers will work on the finishing of their first-team squad, it’s clear the Ibrox manager didn’t want to criticise his players.
After all, Rangers enjoyed near total domination over Ross County and, despite the setback of an equaliser, ran out comfortable winners on the day.
But Rangers fans have raised fears about the finishing ability of those in the squad all season long and it’s something which could come back to bite us eventually.
Gers fans wanted money spent on an out-and-out number 9 in January with Cyriel Dessers and Fabio Silva the Ibrox club’s only forward options as things stand.
When we start to get into the meat of the title campaign in the weeks and months ahead, chances will likely be at a premium and our conversion rate is going to need to increase.
