Rangers are preparing to face Old Firm rivals Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup Final at Hampden and Philippe Clement has a stern warning for his players.
The Belgian manager, 51, is yet to defeat Celtic in five attempts as Rangers boss and is under mounting pressure to get a result over Brendan Rodgers’ team.
But Philippe Clement insists if his Rangers team are to leave Hampden with a winners’ medal around their neck, they’ll need to overcome the best Celtic side he’s ever faced as manager.
This season Celtic are competing for a knockout round place in the Champions League and the Parkhead side are 11 points in front of Rangers in the Scottish Premiership.
It comes after Philippe Clement was asked if this Rangers team had learned from the 1-0 Scottish Cup Final defeat to Celtic last season, a notion the Ibrox manager rejects.
‘Rangers facing a Celtic team better than last season’
“No, like I said, different players, different game in that way,” Clement told the press pre-match. “A lot of different players on our side.
“On Celtic’s side, not that much. Not that much different. Also, they have a bigger squad, more depth in the squad than they had last season. So they’ve been better than last season.
“That’s also the reality, we know. So we need to be better also. But we have a totally different squad than that moment. So it’s now with this squad, getting the best out of that game.
“We don’t want to make choices. It’s about wanting to win every game, every competition, everything you play for.
“So yeah, we’re busy about lifting that trophy on Sunday. That’s our only thing that we’re busy with in our minds.
“All focused on that game, the next game. And it’s a massive one and it’s a nice one.
“And you feel a lot of enthusiasm around it from our fans, from the other side also. So I think it will be a really good game.
“And it’s also two teams who want to win and who want to play to win. I think you guys are also really happy about that.”
Philippe Clement on Old Firm penalty takers
Philippe Clement will be asking his young Rangers squad to go to the well once again after his team’s impressive 1-1 draw with Spurs at Ibrox in the Europa League.
The Gers were unlucky not to take all three points against Ange Postecoglou’s Premier League side in an impressive display which turned heads across Europe.
There’s the very real possibility that an energy-sapped Rangers will have to take Celtic, who’ve had two extra days rest over their rivals, all the way to penalty kicks in Glasgow’s southside.
It’s something that’s not lost on Philippe Clement, who’ve insists his side have been practicing their spot kicks from 12 yards ahead of the Old Firm Final clash.
Rangers already have a list of players who will step up to the spot should the game go all the way to penalties.
“We’re going to (practice penalty kicks), but to be honest, we do that already all season,” said Clement.
“So we have a list in the dressing room. I said to the players, we do it quite regularly. And the player who will be, yeah, I said, from the first week of January will be last, he will have a sanction about that.
“So it’s something that’s living in the dressing room also. We’re doing that, not especially for this game. It’s going on already from the beginning of the season.”
