Rangers chief executive officer James Bisgrove has affirmed that the club will do everything in its power to provide Philippe Clement with the necessary support he needs to assemble a competitive squad.
Rangers embarked on a comprehensive search for their next permanent manager after Michael Beale’s departure, and Clement emerged as the board’s preferred candidate to replace his English counterpart.
The former AS Monaco manager is famous for his ability to assemble a formidable squad on limited resources, but he will have more financial flexibility to work with at Rangers.
However, on-field success is paramount to the club, with Bisgrove warning that silverware is the minimum requirement for Rangers this season.
“We recognise that continuity and stability are going to be absolutely key to this football club,” Bisgrove said (via the Herald).
“We had a very clear vision in terms of the characteristics we wanted the next Rangers manager to have, and the board were unanimous that Philippe was the outstanding candidate in that process.
“Absolutely, this is a long-term appointment. But Rangers is about winning. There is a lot of football to be played this season.”
Beale spent around £15 million to recruit nine players over the summer, yet Rangers find themselves trailing runaway Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic by seven points.
Asked if Clement will also be handed a significant amount to fine-tune the squad, Bisgrove added: “Philippe will make an assessment on the squad and on where he sees the strengths and weaknesses so we can identify how we increase performance and improve results and present it to the board.
“Clearly, there has been investment this summer, but the standard and the bar here is very high. We want to win silverware. Philippe is here for that, that’s why he’s picked Rangers over possibly other options.”
Clement, who has already expressed a commitment to turn things around at Ibrox, will make his long-anticipated debut when Rangers take on Hibernian this weekend.
