Soccer
Rangers boss Philippe Clement will demand his side are physically and mentally ready for a run of 11 matches across three competitions before the end of January.
Clement does not believe the fixture list is conducive to good football but is prepared to rotate his squad from game to game in their quest for silverware this season.
Rangers begin that run with a trip to St. Mirren on Boxing Day, a side they have beaten in 23 of their last 25 meetings in the Scottish Premiership.
They end the year against Motherwell before starting 2025 with a blockbuster showdown at Ibrox against rivals Celtic.
Rangers also face Manchester United and Union Saint-Gilloise in the Europa League, knowing wins in both of those games will see them qualify for the knockout stages of the competition.
“This is not the first time in the history of football that this has happened, so we need to have a squad that’s physically and mentally ready,” Clement said.
“The more you complain about it, the more excuses you have, and I don’t want to give excuses to the team because they all want to play football.
“Is it good for football? I don’t think so and everybody agrees with that but we need to focus on ourselves and be ready.
“It can be an advantage for our group of players that there needs to be a rotation. It means everybody has to be on their toes.”
Philippe Clement spoke to the media ahead of our Boxing Day match against St Mirren. pic.twitter.com/f5bDfwx9dW
— Rangers Football Club (@RangersFC) December 23, 2024
Rangers are nine points behind Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership and their chances of lifting the 2024-25 title are hanging by a thread.
They were also beaten by Brendan Rodgers’ side in a dramatic Scottish League Cup final, losing 5-4 on penalties earlier this month.
And while Clement did not concede his side’s hopes of lifting the title, he said that focus must immediately be on their Boxing Day clash at the SMISA Stadium.
“We know St Mirren is a big challenge. It’s a team with lots of physicality and a manager who always prepares his team really well,” Clement concluded.
“People always say this [the importance of physicality] about Scotland, but the Belgian league is also the same, in the French league it was the same. It’s not as if you don’t have physicality there.”
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