Hindsight, as they say, is a wonderful thing. Knowing what he knows now, Philippe Clement might have made different choices ahead of Rangers’ Europa League clash with Tottenham Hotspur.
Back in September, following Rangers’ elimination from the Champions League by Dynamo Kiev, Clement had to finalize his Europa League squad for the competition’s first phase. At the time, Danilo was grappling with an injury that hindered his progress at Ibrox, while Ianis Hagi was sidelined from Clement’s plans due to a contract dispute. Clement had been clear then that Hagi would not feature under his management, a stance underscored by the Romanian losing his number ten shirt after the signing of Mohamed Diomande.
Three months later, does Clement regret that decision? Knowing how pivotal both Danilo and Hagi have been in Rangers’ recent resurgence, would he reconsider their exclusion from European competition?
Speaking ahead of Ange Postecoglou’s return to Glasgow on Thursday, Clement maintained that, given the circumstances in September, leaving out Hagi and Danilo was the right call, even if hindsight casts doubt on that judgment.
“It’s a bit of a pity, of course, to have Danilo and Hagi not in the selection,” Clement admitted in his pre-match press conference. “But that was a decision we had to make back in September. With the circumstances at that time, it was still the right decision.”
Rangers approach the Tottenham clash on the back of emphatic wins, with an aggregate score of 9-0. Their most fluid and prolific performances of the season have come with Danilo and Hagi back in the starting lineup. Danilo, one of the most technically skilled players in Clement’s squad, has flourished in a partnership with the in-form Hamza Igamane. Danilo scored in Rangers’ 3-0 win over Ross County on Sunday, just days after finding the net in the 6-0 rout of St Johnstone. Hagi, meanwhile, contributed two assists in the same match.
Despite their absence from the Europa League squad, Clement may replicate the strategy that worked so well in Rangers’ last European outing. Igamane spearheaded a 4-1 victory over Nice, supported by an impressive performance from Diomande in a central role. Nedim Bajrami is another option to fill the number ten position.
“It’s about finding a new balance for this game,” Clement said. “The evolution we’ve seen in the team is what we wanted. Maybe we hoped it would happen faster, but I think we’re in a good place.
“When you consider everything we’ve dealt with since the start of the season, it’s clear the team is improving. We’ve had some excellent results and performances. Now, we want to keep building on that progress.”
