Rangers are sticking by Philippe Clement – but Patrick Stewart has warned the beleaguered boss he’s making no guarantees on his future if results don’t improve.
The Ibrox gaffer – who signed a deal until 2028 in the summer – has been left clinging to his job after a disastrous run of results saw his side slide 15 points adrift of league leaders Celtic. That’s proved to be an intolerable position for the furious Ibrox fanbase, with the Rangers Supporters Association and the Union Bears both calling for the Belgian to go in searing statements.
But new CEO Stewart has reassured Clement he is safe for now. The former Manchester United exec met with the 50-year-old for a late-night sit down on Friday to deliver news of a vote of confidence from the Ibrox boardroom. However, it came with the strict stipulation that the Ibrox powerbrokers expect a major improvement on the away form that has seen Clement’s side take just 13 points from 33 available on the road this season. If not, they will have a succession plan in place.
Speaking at a hastily arrange briefing for the Scottish media, Stewart said: “There’s been a lot of talk about results, a lot of talk about the manager, and I know that the spotlight is on chairman Fraser Thornton and myself, but particularly on me. I need to make some tough decisions – but I’m committed to making the right ones for Rangers, not just the popular ones.
“So cutting to the chase, we’re backing Philippe at this time as a board. It’s about taking a deeper look at the issues, addressing those problems and staying focused on building a stronger future for the club. Changing a manager isn’t a silver bullet solution.
“You know where I’ve worked previously, and that isn’t something that has been effective there. It’s not effective at a lot of football clubs where there’s constant change of manager. What I do need to do, and what the board are supporting me with, is uncovering the underlying issues and addressing those.”
Stewart has announced the club have called in external football experts to carry out an independent review. They will get down to work on Monday as they carry out a “root-and-branch” study of the club’s football department, with their findings expected to be announced within the next six to 12 weeks. But Stewart insists axing Clement won’t solve the club’s big issues.
“If we rush and react every time there’s some poor results, we’re in danger of just being back in the same place in a year’s time or 18 months’ time or however long,” he said. “But I want to be clear, I’m not saying everything is fine. The fans are frustrated, I get that.
“We’re also frustrated. If I look at the away results, it’s not what’s expected for Rangers. So we’re working with Philippe to address consistency issues – but I’m also not going to speculate on what happens if results don’t improve.
“I was with Philippe last night, and we discussed the need, the imperative, for results to improve. If results don’t improve, obviously I can’t give Philippe any cast-iron guarantees. He and I have both been around football long enough to know that isn’t the case.
“Equally, I’m not going to get into how many games does Philippe have to save his job, that’s not what we’re about. Football is results-based and I’m not offering any guarantees as to length of tenure because it’s all about improving results.
“Philippe and I have had that discussion so it would be foolhardy of me to say we retain any employee irrespective of results. Of course it’s results-based but equally we all want to work together to improve that and that’s what we’re focused on at the moment.
“We’re about helping Philippe to identify why is there the inconsistency and let’s address that. If anything, changing a manager would be the easy decision, because a lot of supporters are calling for that. I’ve seen the statements. But to reiterate, it’s a results-orientated business, so we know that results have to improve.”
Gers suffered a £17million loss in last year’s financial results. But Stewart was adamant the directors were not standing by Clement because they can’t afford to sack him.
He stressed: “We wouldn’t make any decision on a manager based on financial reasons, absolutely not.”
Asked whether the club had plans in place for a new boss should Clement fail to turn things around, Stewart added: “Every good well-run club should have a succession plan in place for key positions. Whether it’s manager, whether it’s me, whether it’s a chair, that’s something that I’m looking at introducing across the board.”