‘Philippe Clement expects to be sacked after Rangers loss to St Mirren’
Philippe Clement already looks to know his fate at Ibrox following Rangers’ shock 2-0 defeat to St Mirren on Saturday.
Patrick Stewart was tipped to sack Clement when being appointed to the chief executive role at Ibrox in November, but he has stood strong beside the struggling manager.
The passionate Union Bears have made their feelings very clear, having walked out of Ibrox during the 3-0 win over Aberdeen last month, but no such decision has been made by the hierarchy.
However, with another embarrassing defeat in the Scottish Premiership on 22 February, the senior figures at Ibrox are running out of places to hide when furious supporters come knocking.
It is all well and good turning off the lights and pretending no one is home, but when lifelong supporters are beginning to turn their back on the team, it is more than just what is happening on the pitch.
Philippe Clement has nowhere left to run after Rangers failings
Everyone at Ibrox finally expected the trigger to be pulled when Seb Drozd fired Queen’s Park ahead at Ibrox just three games ago, but there is absolutely nothing left to say.
The Gers had the perfect opportunity to close the 13-point gap on their Old Firm rivals at the top of the Scottish Premiership table as Keith Hackett believes the officials guessed when ruling out one of Celtic’s goals.
| Scottish Premiership standings | Points |
| 1. Celtic | 69 |
| 2. Rangers | 56 |
All teams in the Scottish Premiership have the capability to slip up, proven by the Hoops’ defeat to Hibernian, and once again as the Light Blues failed to take advantage.
Clement has always given off confidence that Stewart will not pull the trigger on his tenure, possibly because of the ongoing financial struggles at Ibrox, which could now be fixed when the San Francisco 49ers complete their Rangers takeover.
However, his comments after the St Mirren defeat no longer project that vibe at all. With the results beyond the limit and the buy-out closing in he seems to have given up hope.
Rangers boss accepts defeat as Celtic march forward
While Brendan Rodgers‘ side also lost, many will feel that the Gers’ defeat on Saturday completely rules out any comeback for the Scottish Premiership title.
Speaking after the game, Clement said: “Those are things the board needs to decide. In the end, I believe these players want to do the right things, I believe I can get results with these players. But I am also very disappointed with what we showed today – and I am responsible for that.”
While he has always accepted responsibility, he has rarely accepted that the board have decisions to make when it comes to his future at Ibrox.
It could just be a matter of hours before the hierarchy finally accepts defeat and part ways with the current manager and he finally seems to see that too.