theRangers face a defensive crisis ahead of tomorrow’s Glasgow Derby insists their under pressure boss Philippe Clement…
Defenders John Souttar, Neraysho Kasanwirjo and James Tavernier will all be missing from Thursday’s Dead Rubber Derby at Ibrox. Tavernier’s disappointing absence was confirmed by Clement who ruled his skipper out for “a few weeks” after picking up an injury in their fortuitous 2-2 draw with Motherwell at Fir Park on Sunday.
Balogun’s “very, very, very small chance”
Meanwhile, Leon Balogun who was substituted off after 19 minutes in theRangers 2-1 defeat to St Mirren on Boxing Day has a “very, very, very small chance” of making the third Glasgow Derby meeting of the season, according to theRangers boss Philippe Clement, who is still looking for his first win over Celtic.
Utility man Dujon Sterling was expected to fill in at centre-back alongside slowcoach Robin Propper, but with Tavernier being ruled out, Clement’s defensive plans have been thrown into chaos.
20 year-old Leon King who hasn’t played for the Ibrox club since May last year could be called upon with Sterling possibly filling in at right-back.
Clement has yet to beat Celtic
Clement has yet to beat Celtic, and with theRangers trailing the three-in-a-row Scottish champions by a ginormous 14 points, you’d suspect this will be the Belgian’s last chance if the Hoops were to make it five wins from six tomorrow afternoon against their rivals since the 50-year old’s arrival, after he was sacked my Monaco.
Speaking to the media yesterday, Philippe Clement said: “Nobody will come back into the squad, and we lose Tav also, who got an injury at the end of the game. We took a scan, and there’s clear damage there so he will be out for a few weeks.
“It needs to be possible [for Leon]to play. You cannot play on one leg. We always take risks, and you have to do that in this business, but no crazy risks, that players can be out for months. So that will not be the case with Leon, but we will see if he’s ready or not.”
Tavernier is injured
The Belgian added: “It’s a blow [James Tavernier] and every injury is a blow, and we have had a few blows in that way the last weeks, the last months, first with Nana [Neraysho Kasanwirjo], then with John [Souttar], then with Leon Balogun, with Ridvan Yilmaz before in defence and with Tav now.
“But it’s about finding solutions and looking for solutions and go and work out of that. So that’s what the team has been doing all the time, and they did well, only the last two games we lost goals a little bit out of nothing, not with really clear mistakes or being out of structure, totally not.”
‘We need to find solutions’
“But in these last two games every time that they have had a shot on goal, it’s almost a goal. Those are the things that sometimes happen in football but normally not two games in a row, but it’s been the case, and we have been chasing games because of that. So, we need to find solutions now.”
Conor Spence
The way that Belgium clown, carries on, you would think that they haven’t got any available options for themselves?
Already out with the violin, and be looking to add to the ready-made excuses, with blaming decisions yet again?
Yet he will defend his own decision making?
So predictable now, to what this Belgium clown offers within his waffling, even getting boring with it at this stage now?
So maybe tomorrow will be his last show to preform within, and the next scum eejit manager, can provide the entertainment for ourselves?