Ex Rangers gaffer admits 'brutal' spell came at wrong time - but unique fans trait brings back happy memories

Former Rangers boss Philippe Clement admits that he joined Ibrox at the ‘wrong time’ in his managerial career after a challenging 16-month spell.

Following successful stints in his homeland with Genk and Club Brugge, the Belgian was appointed Ibrox gaffer in October 2023. He got off to a dream start in the Rangers dugout, kicking off with a 14 match-unbeaten run, including the 1-0 victory over Aberdeen in the League Cup final. However as time wore on, back-to-back cup final defeats to Celtic put his position on thin ice, before a shock Scottish Cup exit at home to Queen’s Park was the final nail in the coffin.

Following his dismissal in February 2025, the 52-year old had a nine-month spell out of the game before he was appointed manager of EFL Championship side Norwich City, where he remains to this day. Despite his struggles at Rangers, which he described to talkSPORT as ‘brutal’, Clement still has some fond memories from his time in Govan.

Clement admits he managed Rangers at the ‘wrong time’

He said: "I don't want to go back into that story too much. I don't think it was the right time to be in the club as we saw that a few months later, the club was sold to the American owners. They have now put a lot of money in to Rangers back to where they should be and where I wanted them to be.

"I will stay a Rangers fan for all of my life as it's an amazing club, with amazing fans. I look back with really good memories but it was maybe the wrong time at that moment. It is what it is, but that's football. In Rangers we have to win every game or it was a disaster. We had one of the two best squads in the league and had European football, so we had a game every three days.”

Gaffer remembers ‘passion’ of fans

Clement’s football career has taken him to England and France, as well as Belgium, however he admitted when it comes to passion of fans, Scottish football is ahead of anywhere else he’s been. He continued: "Everybody lives for football there in Glasgow.

“Everyone you meet is either for or against you. It's brutal with the reactions sometimes but I never felt afraid. It could be brutal meeting fans of the other side but I love that passion. I don't think you can find many places in the world where the passion is the same."

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