Philippe Clement is RIGHT to claim Rangers moral victory despite what others say and here's why - Kenny Miller
A case of MailSport pundits collide as Kenny takes Hugh Keevins to task over Clement's comments after rip roaring Old Firm clash.
A few people on the green side of Glasgow seem to have been offended at what Philippe Clement said after the Old Firm game.
Even my old pal and fellow MailSport columnist Mr Keevins has taken umbrage at his post-match comments. But I’ve got news for them. The Rangers gaffer was RIGHT to call the 3-3 draw at Ibrox a moral victory for his team. How could it not be?
Trust me, when you’re 2-0 and 3-2 down in a derby and you score a last-minute equaliser, it feels like a win. And I don’t want to hear any nonsense about Clement supposedly over-celebrating with fans afterwards. This reminds me of when Jamie Carragher tried to have a pop at Arsenal players for lapping up a 3-1 result against Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium recently. Listen, Clement and his Rangers players walk around the pitch at Ibrox now after EVERY game. In this day and age, teams have to do that.
Because when they don’t, fans are asking why? So, of course, after grabbing a late equaliser against Celtic they were always going to enjoy it with the supporters. Win, lose or draw nowadays, players and the manager must show appreciation to the fans.
You get hammered if you don’t so I’m not having Clement getting flak for doing it last Sunday. Rangers weren’t celebrating a draw, as I’ve heard mentioned.
The way that Old Firm game transpired, with Clement’s team looking out of it by half-time, it WAS a moral victory to get a 3-3. They’d fought to get back in a game that looked beyond them after 45 minutes.
At the break, with Celtic 2-0 up, it could have been any score. So Rangers did incredibly well to get it back to 2-2. Even after that, they conceded again which was a body blow.
Yet somehow they produced a 93rd-minute leveller to salvage a point. That goal was huge in the title race for Rangers. If they’d lost, psychologically, they would have been on the back foot – big time.
So the “moral victory” comment was a fair statement. And what that point might represent for Rangers come the end of the season could be absolutely huge. That’s why Clement was so strong in backing his team at full-time.
During the first half he wasn’t happy with their performance. I watched him from the TV gantry and he cut a frustrated figure in the dugout. The Belgian was constantly trying to push his team up the park but it wasn’t happening for them. These games – especially when you’re up against a good Celtic team – can do that to you.
Elsewhere on these pages, Hugh reckons Clement has got caught up in the Old Firm madness. But I refuse to believe that. In fact, I think since the former Monaco boss has arrived in Glasgow, he has done the polar opposite.
He has been a figure of calm at Ibrox. He never gets too high when things are going well or too low when they aren’t. The way he has carried himself as a Rangers manager has been exemplary.
Everything he has done so far has oozed class. What else could he say after the Celtic game? Of course, behind closed doors, he won’t have been entirely happy with his team’s display.
But I tell you what – they didn’t half respond to him at half-time. You saw a far more aggressive Rangers team who could have won it in the end. Some of the punters were having a go behind me at half-time but I told them: “There are 45 minutes to go – has this manager not earned your trust?’
And by the end of the game, Clement had actually helped to increase their confidence in him. With seven games left in a title race, now is not the time for negativity.
Anything can happen in this run-in. Your team can be brilliant and lose – or be terrible and win. This isn’t the time for the manager to over-analyse and give his team stick.
Clement needs these players onside and knowing they can become champions. That’s why he backed them to the hilt after the draw against Celtic.
He hasn’t just galvanised a team since replacing Michael Beale in the dugout. He has galvanised a club and their entire support. Clement has Rangers fans believing again – which simply wasn’t the case when he took over in October.
There’s a unity about this club now and everything is moving in the right direction. That’s why they still have a crack at this title, which is all down to Clement.
And don’t tell me that what he did after the game showed he was happy with a draw.Listen, this is not a boss who accepts or celebrates mediocrity.
This is a guy who demands success and the highest of standards. He’s still got a job to do, which involves winning a title and a Cup.
But in terms of what he has done so far at Gers? I don’t believe he could have done any more.