Skip to main content
Daily Record

Philippe Clement joins the Klopp and Ange club as Rangers boss' aura has Gordon Strachan on alert

Gordon Strachan is yet to meet the Ibrox boss, who played for him at Coventry, since his arrival in Glasgow

Philippe Clement celebrates with the cup

Philippe Clement has an aura like Ange Postecoglou and Jurgen Klopp.


That's the verdict of former Celtic manager Gordon Strachan, who used to manage the Rangers boss during his time as a player for Coventry. The Belgian has had an incredible start to life in the dugout after replacing Michael Beale and he can draw level at the top with Brendan Rodgers' men tonight - and even claim TOP spot depending on the scoreline.


It's been quite the turnaround for the Ibrox side who have already bagged the League Cup in the trophy cabinet this season and have eyes on league glory and a Scottish Cup triumph. They are also in the Europa League last 16 with an exciting finale to the season heading for Govan. Strachan has been impressed by Clement and reckons he has very similar traits as Tottenham and Liverpool duo Postecoglou and Klopp.


READ MORE: Philippe Clement insists Rangers would be Ligue 1 contenders but won't enjoy view from the summit in ScotlandREAD MORE: Philippe Clement picks Rangers moment for fun as boss urges players to stay in 'heaven' with one key caveat

Speaking to Lord Ping, he said: "He’s been an impressive figure in management. People are drawn to him in a similar way people are drawn to people like Klopp and Ange. He has a presence, and that helps players buy into your ideas.

"He says all the rights things. In interviews it doesn’t look like he wants to be bullied and he stands up for himself when he needs to do, which is good. I think players like to see their managers giving as good as they got in the media. I like that about him too. He’ll tell you how his team played, you don’t tell him."

He continued: "I haven’t been in contact with Philippe for a long time, with my history at Celtic, I can’t. I was close to him when he played under me at Coventry – I even babysat his kids one evening. His determination as a player to overcome adversity was phenomenal. He had a nasty injury when he was playing for me at Coventry.

Article continues below

"If you look at his managerial career, his record has been terrific wherever he has been. You always follow your old players, and it’s great, but when he arrived on my doorstep at Rangers, I was thinking to myself, ‘nice to see you, Philippe. We’ve got a problem here because I managed Celtic, and my son is on the coaching staff’.

"I hope he can enjoy the scenery and the sights of Scotland. Maybe one day we could meet up and have a cup of tea or something like that, but that would have to be as far as it ever goes."

Ange Postecoglou
Ange Postecoglou

Another man who has been dominating the headlines is Hearts star Lawrence Shankland. His name was everywhere during the January transfer window amid talk over his future at Tynecastle with a new deal offered and less than 18 months to run on his current terms.

Strachan believes the Scotland star is the BEST striker in the country and he reminds him of a former Celtic striker in terms of his football intelligence. He added: "Shankland is the best striker in Scotland. He reminds me a little bit of Dion Dublin in terms of his intelligence as a footballer. He is someone that has got better as he has got older because he is retaining information and he now understands his role perfectly.

"He’s got stronger as he’s got older. Physically, he can be hard for certain defenders to handle. He knows what his body can do, and his understanding of the game is better. His finishing is sublime. Left foot, right foot, headers. He can do it all.

Article continues below

"Shankland is one of these guys, who never panics in front of goal. A lot of strikers panic in one-on-one situations, their heartrate increases, Shankland is the total opposite. It wouldn’t surprise me if his heartrate decreases because he is that cool in front of the goal and he understands his job as a striker perfectly. At this moment he is the best striker in Scotland in terms of all-round ability."

Follow Daily Record:


Celtic FCRangers FCPhillipe ClementAnge PostecoglouJurgen KloppLawrence ShanklandScottish PremiershipEuropa LeagueLeague CupWilliam Hill Scottish CupGordon StrachanBullying
reach logo

At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the saleor sharing of your data, at any time clicking the "Do Not Sell or Share my Data" button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Privacy Notice.