Philippe Clement believed that he was the right man for Rangers, however, his inability to deal with teams who were physical and parked the bus, ultimately, saw his demise.
The Belgian got more than one chance to prove that he should keep his job as Rangers manager, however, after defeat to St Mirren added to a dismal performance, it wasn’t a surprise when the club announced that he was sacked.
Three names have emerged as potential interim options, but it is current Rangers assistant manager Issame Charai who is poised to take over starting with the first training sessions at Auchenhowie this week.
Issame Charai tactics revealed as Rangers assistant steps up
Charai only arrived a matter of weeks ago but has already seen first hand what life at Ibrox is like.
Victory over Union Saint Gilloise was followed by defeat to Queen’s Park and St Mirren and the honeymoon period was quickly over.
If Charai is given the interim job, there should be a noticeable change in how Rangers create chances as an interview with Moroccan football podcast L’Vestiaire reveals.
When talking about how he wants his teams to build play, the 42-year old explained:
“The ball starts from the defense, and Amir Richardson, the midfielder, drops deep while the full-back moves wide to attract the opposing winger.
“This leaves Amir with space to play, and he connects with the midfielders, who keep it simple and find the full-back. The full-back then looks to reach what he calls the “assist zone”—a wide pass that allows the crosser to deliver the ball with a first-time touch, giving the three attackers time to position themselves.”
What Rangers fans could see with Charai in charge
The “assist zone” is an area of the park that Rangers seemed intent on ignoring under Clement but it is one that Celtic regular target for their wingers.
They link with the forwards and the midfielders to get in behind teams and turn opposition defences looking to pack the box.
Full-backs also regularly hit this area as seen by Celtic’s controversial disallowed goal against Hibs at the weekend.
In Clement’s last game in charge, everything was in front of St Mirren.
It was side-to-side and crosses were thrown in from deep rather than from behind the defence.
It was too easy, and Alex Gogic was made to look like prime Carlos Puyol.
