Philippe Clement inherited players who had already been written off at Rangers and has seen how hard it is to offload them.
The manager will be desperate to build his own squad, however, he fully understands the long-term job at hand and the need to clear the decks.
One area where Rangers have strengthened is on the wings with the arrival of Oscar Cortes and Vaclav Cerny and yet the lack of depth is worrying.
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Rabbi Matondo could leave Rangers for Blackburn Rovers
The subject of interest from Leeds United, Rabbi Matondo is now said to be more likely to head to Blackburn Rovers in a move that would free up valuable space on the wage bill.
The Daily Mail claims that the 23-year old is “destined” for Blackburn which would be a transfer that should afford Matondo more game time.
His numbers per 90 minutes at Rangers are more than respectable, but the problem has always been his consistency of availability and performance.
Back to back goals against Hibernian and Celtic proved what he is capable of and suggested that the penny had dropped, but there is no point scoring 30 yard screamers if you can’t score tap ins or when one v one in the middle of the box.
Too often in the past, his final decision has been left wanting but it is an issue that Philippe Clement and his staff have been working on.
Clement had identified Matondo weakness
Speaking last season after Matondo’s goal against Hibs, Clement revealed that the winger had been grafting to improve his game:
“I am also really happy with the goal of Rabbi (Matondo) today because for me it was of his biggest working points, to keep controlling his shots.
“In the past I saw him missing too many chances, that he was shooting wild and not putting the ball in control in the corner.
“He’s been working hard with all staff on that the last couple of months and I see more and more goals like that in the training and also in the games now.
“It’s an individual thing towards Rabbi but it’s also a collective thing, because everybody is working really hard on their working points also, in the whole squad.
“And like this there is still a lot of margin to grow with this squad, not only physically but also technically.”
When Schalke signed Rabbi Matondo for a fee reported to be £11m, they were buying potential.
The Wales international hasn’t really kicked on though with his ability only being seen in flashes.
That ability could soon be on display at Ewood Park.
