Philippe Clement believes Mohamed Diomande can go all the way to the top of European football while indicating that the January signing’s time at Ibrox could be the precursor to a move to a club even higher up the food chain.
No fan wants to think of their beloved football team as a ‘selling club’, of course.
But that’s just the harsh nature of it in the modern game, where leagues like the Dutch Eredivisie, the Belgian Jupiler League and the Scottish Premiership are often picked apart by more deep-pocketed clubs from more well-heeled divisions.
Philippe Clement, formerly of Genk and Club Brugge, knows from experience what life is like at a club of Rangers’ means. And the straight-talking head coach accepts that, if Mohamed Diomande builds on an exceptional start to life in Glasgow, it might not be too long before Rangers are offered the chance to make a sizeable profit on their £4.5 million investment (Scottish Sun).
Philippe Clement delighted by Rangers newbie Diomande
“For sure (he can improve further). Not only the next weeks, the next months and years,” Clement says of the former Nordsjaelland ace. “He’s a high potential player and I don’t think Rangers will be his last step.
“Of course, you need some luck with injuries in your career. But, if he steers clear of that, he’s going to make bigger steps. He has talent but also the right mentality to work for the team, be very concentrated and very focused.
“Those are the things you are looking for when you go into talks with players.”
Diomande already has two goals in four league games, fizzing in a long-range opener in Saturday’s 5-0 hammering of Hearts. All the attributes which made him such a stand-out in Denmark – the poise, power and press resistance – have shone through during an excellent first few weeks in Scotland.
And Clement, when quizzed on whether Diomande can reach the ‘very top’, was keen to point out that he sees no reason why not.
Two goals in four games already
“You can see what they can do on the pitch or what they’re doing that you think you can improve as a gaffer. But the most important thing is about how ambitious people are to evolve themselves and how they want to take in information and work around that,” Clement adds.
“(Diomande) is somebody with a really high focus on those things.
“It’s like a sponge. He will get better and better the more information he gets. And the more experience he gets, the better he will become.”
Diomande was criticised occasionally at Norsjaelland for his lack of goals. He failed to score in 21 appearances before moving to Rangers in January. With two already under Clement, the 22-year-old Ivorian appears to have already added a new string to his bow.
Fellow January addition Oscar Cortes also scored in that Hearts shellacking.
