Glasgow Rangers finally sacked Michael Beale last weekend as the 3-1 defeat to Aberdeen proved to be the final straw for James Bisgrove and the rest of the board.
In truth, his dismissal was inevitable, especially considering their lack of identity on the pitch which has failed to inspire the club to anything positive of note so far this season.
Beale’s tenure last just ten months after he took over following the sacking of Giovanni van Bronckhorst last November, and it is almost a case of Deja Vu for the supporters who are dying for a manager who will bring a solid style of play which will get results on the pitch.
Numerous names have already been linked with the vacant role, which is standard practice following any sacking, yet some of these must be avoided at all costs.
Frank Lampard is keen to speak to the board while former Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder is also on a reported shortlist of candidates.
Although these men have managed in the Premier League, they are hardly names which will excite the supporters and it's clear a gamble needs to be taken rather than resorting to the safest name, as it hasn’t exactly worked out recently.
A name which has cropped up recently is that of Belgian Philippe Clement and his reputation, along with a title-winning CV, suggests he may be an ideal choice for the job.
Why was Michael Beale sacked?
While ten months isn’t a long time to give a manager, it was evident that he had lost the support of the crowd due to the lacklustre playing style that was demonstrated during games.
Indeed, a chorus of boos rang out around Ibrox following a 1-0 win over Motherwell a few weeks ago, and when the supporters are booing the team after a victory, there is clearly a massive problem.
The 43-year-old failed to secure any silverware last term, losing to Celtic in both the League Cup final and the Scottish Cup semifinal, while eventually finishing seven points behind the Parkhead outfit in the Premiership.
The board obviously backed him during the summer transfer window as Beale spent £6m on Danilo and £3m on Sam Lammers while moving on players such as Antonio Colak, Fashion Sakala, and Glen Kamara in the biggest summer overhaul for years.
This strategy has failed to pay off, however, as the Gers have recorded just eight wins from 14 fixtures this season so far, suffering damaging defeats to PSV Eindhoven and Celtic.
Three losses in just seven league games has arguably ended their chances of title glory before it even began and this type of form will need to be remedied, and soon, if the club has aspirations of ending Celtic’s dominance.
There is still time to salvage something from the 2023/24 campaign, but this requires a manager to come in and hit the ground running straight away.
Clement is currently out of work following his dismissal from AS Monaco at the end of last season after he failed to secure European football for the French side.
Could Philippe Clement be the next Rangers manager?
According to The Telegraph, Clement is a name which is being considered by the Ibrox hierarchy as a potential new manager, and it may prove to be a popular one as his record is certainly better than Beale’s.
The in-demand coach forged his reputation via a solid playing career, where he turned out for Club Brugge over 350 times while even earning 38 caps for Belgium, representing his country at the 1998 World Cup and making the squad for Euro 2000.
The 49-year-old took his first steps into coaching by serving as the assistant manager for Brugge for five years between 2012 and 2017 before moving to Beveren for his first permanent post.
It was his spell at KRC Genk which showcased his abilities as a coach however, winning the Belgian title in the 2018/19 season and this led him to return to Brugge, this time as their head coach.
Another two titles followed before he was snapped up by Monaco and given the chance to impress in a top five European league, although it proved to be a rather unsuccessful stint.
He was praised following his arrival by sporting director Paul Mitchell, who said: “His profile as a modern coach, with his teams playing with great intensity and daring, including on the continental stage, and his ability to combine titles and the development of young players have made him one of the most prominent and successful coaches in Europe in recent years.”
He lost only 21 of his 73 matches in charge of the Ligue 1 club, yet this was deemed not good enough, and their loss could be Rangers gain.
Is Phillipe Clement a good option for Rangers?
Over the course of his managerial career, Clement has averaged an impressive 1.85 points per game figure, while demonstrating his attacking philosophy as his teams have netted 611 goals across 310 matches and this works out at nearly two goals a game.
Comparing this record to Beale, it’s evident that Clement is by far the more successful coach. The former QPR manager has only managed 121 games during his short career as a coach, yet he has an average of 1.78 points per game while his teams have found the back of the net 219 times.
Add in Clement’s title-winning experience and the Belgian would clearly be a big upgrade on Beale should he be appointed as the next Rangers manager.
Despite his sacking, his spell at Monaco wasn’t exactly disastrous and perhaps a fresh challenge in Scotland would allow him to return to a club where success is expected on a regular basis, similar to that of Club Brugge.
As time wore on, Beale continued to look more and more out of his depth, failing to inspire the team during games while he didn’t establish a proper playing identity which heavily impacted performances.
Clement tends to operate with a 4-4-2 and this could work well with the players he would have at his disposal, with several of Beale’s tactical systems not working out well whatsoever.
The 49-year-old is maybe a left-field name, yet the club require some sort of gamble if they look to win back the league title and impress in Europe.