Rangers defender Ben Davies claims the squad have a good “early impression” of new manager Philippe Clement.
The Ibrox side have experienced an upturn in form under the Belgian manager who joins a squad bereft of confidence and under increasing scrutiny from the fans.
Ben Davies is one player who has it all to prove at Rangers and speaking about some one-to-one pep talks with Philippe Clement, the defender revealed that the Ibrox squad are onside with the ex-Monaco manager’s message.
It comes with Rangers beating Hibs at Ibrox and earning a draw at Sparta Prague before having the chance to cut into Celtic’s lead with victory over Hearts this afternoon.
“The manager has filled the players with confidence, and in the second half against Sparta we showed that a bit more,” said Davies.
“On a personal note I’m happy to be back involved in the team and am most pleased about the fact we got a clean sheet.
“He thinks I have a good passing range and he wants me to believe in myself a bit more. That’s probably the same for a few players.
“The early impression from training is that we like him.
“Thursday was another step in the right direction. That’s two decent performances in a row, the win last Saturday and the draw away from home in Europe is definitely something to build on.
“But it’s just one game at a time and we’ve got a massive game on Sunday now.”
Ben Davies reveals Philippe Clement backing
That Ben Davies has revealed the players are onside with Philippe Clement is good news for the Rangers manager.
The Belgian coach is tasked with turning this confidence shattered bunch of no-hopers into title challengers and it’s not going to happen overnight.
Ben Davies has toiled since joining the club in a reported £4m deal from Liverpool last summer but it’s clear Philippe Clement sees something in the defender.
He’s also one of several whose lacklustre showings have contributed to the sackings of Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Michael Beale.
Whilst John Souttar appears to be the preferred partner to Connor Goldson, there will be opportunities for the centre back in the weeks and months ahead.
This includes in the draw against Sparta Prague, where Ben Davies was forced to deputise in the absence of any recognised left-back.
Speaking after the game Philippe Clement was glowing in his praise of the defender and let’s hope that Davies – like so many in the squad – can turn a corner under the Belgian.
