Philippe Clement has fielded 26 Rangers players in the Premiership this season, but one star has now been urged to leave Ibrox and escape their ‘unpleasant situation’.
The 2024/25 campaign has so far offered the Rangers first-team mixed fortunes with Jack Butland playing the most minutes to Robbie Fraser with the least. Gers stars have so far had on average 419 minutes on the pitch during Premiership fixtures under Clement this season.
Butland tops the chart for top-flight minutes at Ibrox with 990 after playing every minute on offer through Rangers’ first 11 matches. James Tavernier with 908 has played the most by an outfield player. But one player, with only 50 minutes to their name, has been urged to leave.
Adrian Mutu urges Ianis Hagi to leave his ‘unpleasant situation’ at Rangers
Chelsea legend Adrian Mutu, who most recently served as the manager of CFR Cluj earlier in the year, thinks his Romanian compatriot Ianis Hagi needs to leave Rangers. Muti is adamant that the 26-year-old is enduring an ‘unpleasant situation’ with Clement refusing to play him.
Hagi has only featured for 50 minutes in the Premiership so far this season thanks to his two cameos off Rangers’ bench. Clement introduced the midfielder for Ross McCausland against St Johnstone on October 6 and replaced Tom Lawrence away to Aberdeen on October 30.
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Other than those two outings, Hagi has only made Rangers’ matchday squad against Hearts on November 10. So, Mutu urges the 43-cap Romanian to quit the Gers and urges someone to tell Hagi to leave Rangers – even if he has not spoken to him and Hagi’s father, Gheorghe.
“I don’t know,” Mutu stated when Fanatik asked why Hagi wants to stay at Rangers. “That’s Ianis’ problem. I didn’t talk to him, not even to Gica that much.
“Indeed, it is an unpleasant situation. He must be asked why he insists on staying. I think that it is not convenient for anyone not to play. No matter how much money you earn.
“I’ve seen players, and I’ve been in that category – if I don’t at least have the chance, because he often doesn’t have the chance to train with the big team, naturally I’d like to change the place.”
Ianis Hagi missed ‘everything’ about Rangers whilst out on loan in 2023/24
The summer transfer window often saw Hagi be linked with a move away from Rangers after returning from a loan spell at Deportivo Alaves. Yet he stayed and later said that Hagi missed ‘everything’ about Rangers while in Spain, where he struggled with their different mentality.
But while he may have missed Rangers, Clement seemingly did not miss Hagi given his want of minutes. Ex-Romania manager Dumitru Dumitriu has also urged Hagi to leave Rangers for pastures new after four years in Glasgow, given he is such an outcast at Ibrox this campaign.
Hagi arrived at Ibrox in January 2020 from KRC Genk, and agreed to a contract extension in December 2022 keeping him at Rangers until May 2026. But for how much longer Hagi can accept being frozen out by Clement remains to be seen as pundits beg for him to move on.
