'Too early to assess' - Philippe Clement issues Rangers injury update on key midfield duo after Hibs win

Philippe Clement has admitted that he took Rangers playmaker Todd Cantwell and midfielder Nicolas Raskin off as a precautionary measure during the 3-0 win over Hibs at Easter Road.

Cantwell and Raskin failed to reappear for the second half in the capital and were replaced by Tom Lawrence and Dujon Sterling respectively. The substitutes played a leading role as the Ibrox side closed the gap on Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic to five points, with one game still in hand to play.

But Clement wasn't too concerned when asked about the injury situation of both players post-match.

Clement admitted: "It's too fast to assess that, but it looks okay for the moment and I hope that is the case tomorrow also. After that, he made a really good goal, but I didn't want to take a risk with those things.

"It's the same with Nico (Raskin). His foot was slipping and we thought it was because of the tape. We took the tape out and he still had the same sensations, so you cannot play on one foot. That's why I made the two changes at half-time and the two players who came in had directly an impact on the game so that needs to be our strength over the next couple of months."

Quizzed on whether or not it still remains a priority to add further reinforcements to take Rangers to the next level, Clement responded: "We need the squad to be competitive in three competitions. We need that but it doesn't mean that if a new player comes he is guaranteed to play.

"It is about showing that you are the best. I don't care if someone is new, cost a lot of money or is 17 or 27 or has the biggest contract or the smallest contract in the team. It is what you show in training and being part of the team and wanting to be part of the team."