Michael Stewart has questioned Philippe Clement’s decisions on some Rangers players this season at Ibrox.
Hamza Igamane, Ianis Hagi, and Clinton Nsiala have recently starred for the Gers, but they appeared little, if at all, throughout the first half of the season.
The Govan outfit appears to have turned a turnaround recently, having won six of their past seven games and advanced to the Europa League’s round of 16.
Stewart commented on the Scottish Football Social Club (3 February): “It makes me question his judgment because Igamane, Nsiala, and Hagi were nowhere to be found.
“Two of them are not on the European squad, and you’re saying, ‘These guys are making the team better.'”
“Some poor decisions that the team suffered for in the first part of the campaign.”
Is Clement paying for Rangers choices made early in the season?
The Belgian manager was under intense pressure at Ibrox for much of the season, and it appeared like he would be gone soon.
Despite his side’s ten-point deficit to Celtic in the Scottish Premiership, Clement appears to have alleviated the pressure on his future in recent weeks with a string of solid results.
The Bears have benefited greatly from the injuries of Hagi, Igamane, and Nsiala, but it is impossible to say how they would have done if the latter two had been thrown into the deep end before they were ready.
Some players rise to the challenge, while others fail under pressure, so condemning Clement for being late to the party with their picks is not fully accurate.
If he had placed them in the starting lineup too early, they might not have had the same impact as they do now.
