Chris Sutton is full of praise for the ‘incredible job’ Philippe Clement has done at Rangers with the former Monaco boss chasing down Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.
If it wasn’t for that Old Firm derby defeat by their Glasgow rivals on December 30th – a result which left Rangers eight points adrift in second albeit with two games in hand – Philippe Clement would probably have strolled into the New Year, hands in his pockets and whistling a jaunty tune, with an A-star next to his name.
A trophy in the bag and a Europa League knockout spot secured – not to mention 14 wins and just one defeat from his 18 games – that Celtic reverse is the only real blot on Clement’s otherwise pristine copybook at Ibrox.
Rangers flying under Philippe Clement
“Philippe Clement has come in, and I’ve got to say I do think he’s done a pretty incredible job up to now,” Celtic icon Sutton tells Sky Sports, the three-time Belgian league champion also straying clear of the sort of headline-grabbing, tying-your-own-shoelaces-together sort of claims which tripped over the likes of Mick Beale and Pedro Caixinha.
“He hasn’t said anything daft, and Rangers have been exceptionally consistent. Even bouncing back after defeat against Celtic with a tricky game against Kilmarnock.
They showed a really good mentality, and I think the title race will go all the way.”
A title race on the cards?
Rangers made light work of a difficult Killie side last week, their final fixture before the winter break. Clement has also succeeded in getting far more out of some of Beale’s under-fire summer signings, with Cyriel Dessers in particular starting to look a lot more like the striker who scored at a very reliable rate in the Netherlands with Heracles and Feyenoord.
