Philippe Clement has been blasted for making comparisons between the disparity of resources between Rangers and Celtic – with one pundit arguing that what the Belgian says in the media is ‘killing him’.
After leading the Gers to a 3-0 win up at Ross County last weekend, Clement hit the headlines for saying that his team would be up against it in their following two games against Tottenham and Celtic because the two sides were “financially out of Rangers’ league. But on Thursday night, the Light Blues were more than a match for Premier League big boys Spurs, who were fortunate to come away with a 1-1 draw in the Europa League clash at Ibrox.
Gers now go into Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup final with the Hoops off the back of a nine game unbeaten run in all competition, but Clement’s statement last weekend does not sit right with Parkhead hero Peter Grant one bit. Speaking on Go Radio, he said: “You cannot say that. The 80s and 90s were tough to take for Celtic but I can never remember a manager ever saying it was because Rangers were financially better than us. I think it was a silly statement.
“I think he (Clement) is still learning. I think sometimes what kills him are his interviews. I thought he started off very well but he’s not poorer at it. There is no excuse. You have been in football long enough. It doesn’t matter what team you are in, you can never make excuses about losing games of football.”
Former Ibrox captain Ferguson also appeared on the show, and while he was much more reserved, reckons Clement would take back those words in a heartbeat. “I’m sure he would have regretted saying it if I am brutally honest”, he stated. “If you look at the gulf between Rangers and Ross County on Sunday, it was the same when we came up against Inter Milan, Barcelona and Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
“We just went out and gave it our all. Obviously they had a hell of a bigger budget than us and a lot more money but when you cross that white line you give it your all and see where it takes you. So I think if you ask the manager (again) he would probably retract from saying that.”
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