THE physical condition of the Rangers players he inherited from his predecessor Michael Beale drew some less than complimentary remarks from Philippe Clement at his pre-match press conference yesterday afternoon.
But is the Belgian fit to be manager of the Glasgow giants himself?
Only time will tell if the former Beveren, Genk, Club Brugge and Monaco man has what it takes to make the Ibrox club the dominant force in Scotland and challengers in Europe once again.
Still, Rangers fans flocked to Govan in their thousands for the cinch Premiership match against Hibernian today to see Clement make his debut in the dugout.
They headed home, after James Tavernier and his team mates had recorded an emphatic 4-0 win thanks to an Abdallah Simah double, a Nicolas Raskin goal and a Cyriel Dessers strike, optimistic that he might just be the guy who transforms their fortunes and hopeful that far better times may lie ahead.
It is five years since Hibs last got a result at Ibrox. So it would have been an upset if they had taken something. Still, the hosts were far better than they had been in the 3-1 loss they suffered at the hands of Aberdeen in the league in their previous home outing three weeks ago.
Here are five talking points from a result which saw Rangers reduce the lead of Celtic, who play Hearts at Tynecastle tomorrow afternoon, in the Premiership to four points.
SIMA STRIKERATE
He’s rubbish that Abdallah Sima, all he does is score goals.
The Senegalese striker took his tally for the 2023/24 campaign to nine today with a well-taken brace.
He played a one-two with Cyriel Dessers, left Lewis Miller for dead and slotted beyond David Marshall off the inside of the left post. It was another fine finish from the 22-year-old.
Only Matt O’Riley of Celtic has been on target on as many occasions as Sima in the top flight in this country this term.
Clement must ensure the forward contributes far more from open play in the weeks ahead if Rangers are to build on this result and land silverware.
That said, he will be pleased to have an individual who is composed and clinical in front of goal at his disposal. Dessers and Sam Lammers both passed up good opportunities to get on the scoresheet and sew up the three points before the former finally beat Marshall late on.
RASKIN JOY
It is fair to say that Raskin has failed to perform to the same high level in the opening weeks of this season as he did in the second half of last term after completing his transfer from Standard Liege in his homeland.
Will the midfield terrier get his mojo back working with his compatriot? He was far more influential this afternoon than he had been for some time. Opening his account for Rangers, too, will do wonders for his confidence. He did well to beat David Marshall from fully 25 yards out and put his side two ahead just before half-time.
Could former Scotland goalkeeper Marshall have done better? The 38-year-old will have been bitterly disappointed not to get a hand to an attempt which lacked power. Still, Raskin clearly enjoyed the moment greatly. He was a deserved recipient of the Man of the Match award at the end.
BARISIC BLOW
The Croatian left back went down injured early on and failed to get back up again. He limped off and was replaced by Ridvan Yilmaz. The substitute helped to ensure that Rangers ran out comfortable winners.
But will Barisic be available for the Europa League encounter with Sparta Prague in the Czech Republic on Thursday night. It will present problem for Clement if he is sidelined long-term. Yilmaz is not in the European pool.
The new manager could switch to a back three or play a centre half out of position. Whatever he does, it will be far from ideal in such a difficult and important away game.
CANTWELL BOOST
One of the biggest cheers of the afternoon came when Todd Cantwell made his return from injury in the second half. Rangers have missed the blonde-haired playmaker, who has been out with a knee injury since the Celtic loss at the start of last month, badly.
Danilo, who broke his cheekbone against St Johnstone last month and had his face in a mask, returning was also a positive development for the home team.
STRONG START
Former Club Brugge and Belgium centre half Clement, who got a warm welcome from the crowd when he emerged from the tunnel before kick-off, cut an imposing figure on the side of the park.
He paced around his technical area nervously for the full 90 minutes. He was not shy about expressing his displeasure about certain decisions to fourth official Duncan Williams either.
His opposite number Nick Montgomery could have no complaints about suffering his first loss as Hibs manager. The visitors were toothless going forward and cut open far too easily at the back.
But this confident display and resounding win augur well for his counterpart. He was applauded off the pitch along with his charges after the final whistle.
