Rangers boss Philippe Clement accepts that Todd Cantwell isn’t playing in his best position right now – but is backing him to bounce back.
The last week has been the trickiest yet for Philippe Clement at Rangers.
The 1-1 draw at Aberdeen was rather unconvincing and Thursday’s 1-1 draw with Aris Limassol wasn’t much better.
Clement remains unbeaten as Rangers boss and two draws isn’t exactly the end of the world, but he is now learning about the expectation levels at Ibrox.
Fans are looking for a response against St Mirren this afternoon and the role of Todd Cantwell will be fascinating to see.
Philippe Clement comments on Todd Cantwell situation at Rangers
Playmaker Cantwell was a key man under Michael Beale but there have been some questions about him under Clement.
Cantwell hasn’t been quite as vital and that has resulted in suggestions from pundits about a potential move away.
Stephen McGinn suggested in November that Cantwell could be sold in January, believing that Clement may not ‘fancy’ the Englishman.
That theory only gained momentum on Thursday night as Cantwell was substituted after just 36 minutes against Aris.
We must now wait to find out whether Cantwell keeps his place in the starting XI against St Mirren today, but he seems to have Clement’s backing.
Clement has told The Daily Record that he just didn’t think Cantwell was ‘playing his normal game’ against Aris and it was better to get him off than waste time.
Clement admits that Cantwell isn’t playing in his best position right now having been shoved on the right flank, but thinks that he can bounce back and ‘react positively’ moving forward.
“I felt Todd wasn’t playing his normal game on Thursday night. You can wait 10 minutes longer but for what? To lose 10 minutes more? I’m sure he’ll react positively from it moving forward now,” said Clement. “Todd has done a good job for me already on the right side, which I know isn’t his best position or preferred position. But with the injuries we have and the players out, that’s the situation right now. I don’t have many options on that side and he’s done a good job for the team before.”
“On Thursday it was less good but Sunday is a new game. It’s not about me being happy or if players give a bad pass or miss a chance. They need to play in the right positions. Otherwise we don’t play our football together and that’s not good,” he added.
Cantwell would ideally like to play on the left flank or as a number 10, but he is now having to try and do a job on the right.
Abdallah Sima is on the left side whilst the likes of Sam Lammers and Tom Lawrence are operating as the number 10.
Ross McCausland’s emergence means that he could play down the right side, potentially freeing up Cantwell to play centrally.
Alternatively, Cantwell may find himself out of the team soon – and he needs to show the right attitude to prove himself under Clement.
