Rangers v Benfica – Philippe Clement and James Tavernier preview crucial Europa League clash

As a player, Philippe Clement hated it when he was asked to unhook himself from football’s adrenalin drip and the Rangers boss can’t see his Ibrox stars being too keen to kick their craving for big Euro night action either.

The Light Blues are currently locked into a relentless cycle of play-recover-play, and face a massive match at Ibrox on Thursday evening as they look to see off Benfica to reach the Europa League quarter-finals.

The Gers boss and skipper James Tavernier have given their thoughts ahead of the big night in Govan and you can watch what they had to say in the video above.

Related Article: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/addict-philippe-clement-tips-rangers-32347105

Daily Record Homepage: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/

Daily Record Facebook: https://facebook.com/TheScottishDailyRecord
Daily Record IG: https://instagram.com/scottishdailyrecord
Daily Record Twitter: https://twitter.com/Daily_Record
Daily Record Newsletters: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/newsletter-preference-centre/

Join our WhatsApp communities here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages:

DAILY RECORD: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/join-daily-records-whatsapp-community-31116469

RECORD SPORT RANGERS: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/join-record-sports-new-rangers-31111892

You can get all the latest news, sport, showbiz and comment at DailyRecord.co.uk

LIKE | COMMENT | SUBSCRIBE | SHARE
#DailyRecord #rangers #europaleague

To cwell returns is he fit to play from the beginning and how big a boost is it to have him involved at all uh he’s ready to play uh an amount of minutes what’s always discussed with the medical staff and they give me uh their idea about that and I followed that already

For five months so uh he’s clearly not ready for uh for 90 minutes then it’s to decide is it starting is it not starting I don’t want to give away too much uh but we know the amount of minutes that he can play and he feels good he

Was good in the training also so I’m happy to to see him back I will then answer the rest of your questions before already duon will not be in a selection it’s a it’s a minor thing but it’s too big risk to to let him play to

Make it more serious so we will see towards Sunday if it will be possible or not next couple of days and and Ros mland still has problems like you guys saw at hips he played he came in he played for some minutes but then he get more and more problem because there’s

Still blood of in his SC because of the hard tackle that he get um so he did one part of the training that you guys saw afterwards he was out also because uh we cannot force that too much we will see tomorrow how he is if he feels better or not if he

Can be in the selection or not where does your confidence come from that the squad can continue to to deal with you know injury and availability issues and ultimately come through this one tomorrow because they’ve proven that so many times already and because the feeling I get

Every day that I when I step into that dressing room the dynamic that’s there the will that’s there and and every day that I see on the training grounds so players starting players not starting there’s no difference uh players playing in another position there’s no difference they all

Give their best with all the all the capacities they have for the team and and like this we we have won already a lot of games this season against good opponents also we proven that also uh last Thursday so we will continue in that way and what I said

Already a few times to the group and lot of times to you guys that’s for me crucial um that mentality to be there for the team and not only for yourself they understand it now and I will be tough on that to see if somebody steps

Out of that story he puts himself out of the story but until now uh in five months I didn’t have to do that one time sometimes as a as a manager you need to react in the moment that that happens and and put an example but uh they

Didn’t give me a chance for that until now the Home Advantage in what way does that change the game or in what way do you expect a similar challenge to what you play last week I don’t know if it will change the game that much we will

See um it’s also not so important to change the game because we played a really good game in Benfica and we could have won that game also because if you don’t get this penalty against before halftime it’s it’s maybe another game but those are the circumstances you

Don’t have control of what will help a lot is our fans are amazing they give so much energy to the team and that can help to to go above your go above your level to make this final Sprint to block a shot to make a decisive action that you have this extra

Energy and that’s what I’m counting on also that the fans from the front second until the last second uh Go full for the team and it’s a little bit pity for us that uh rules are changed uh I think it was last season or the season before I think

Last season in Europe because normally a 22 results if you have a 0 or 1-1 you qualify it’s not the case uh so it’s going to be a really interesting game and both teams will play to win you say you’re not sure if the the IB F will

Change the game to to much what what kind of game you want to see yourself would you like to see another I want to see a game that we win by any means necessary you want to see an open game a game you control tight game how you

Enis I I don’t really care about that because that depends also on the opponent what they are doing we’re not the only team on on the field but going out with 70% ball possession you don’t like then I prefer to have the ball less but to win the game

In terms of um you said that do you need to be above your level you know to go through do you think it needs to be the the biggest best performance of the Season that you that depends also of the opponent um if we need to be better than than in

Lisabon so we’re only busy with ourselves and getting the best out of ourselves in the team to to focus on ourselves also in all the way we’re training where I’m like 80% focused on oursel what we going to do how we going to score goals and 20% how we can stop

Teams of course against the team as benica with all their qualities you need to have a lot of attention because they have so many players who who can make the difference so all the players need to know every detail they have the experience also out of the first game

That’s already an advantage I think and uh um and we need to continue in that way so like I said before lisabon we would would not park the bus there like a lot of teams are doing against them we didn’t do that so we will not do it in I

Brooks but you need to be efficient it’s it’s a top top game with top quality on both sides so it will be decided in details so you need to take the details to your side have you managed a team in a European quarter final before uh uh

Quarterfinal uh not as a manager yes as assistant with Bruce we went to Europa League quarterfinal uh so no it’s a good challenge thanks for reminding me that’s a new one then but I’m still a young manager what I meant was it would be quite an achievement I know you don’t

Like to talk about yourself no it’s no for yourself no that says enough that I didn’t realize that to be honest so no I’m I’m totally not busy with that I’m busy with the boys and making every game a better game letting everybody more more understand what we need in every

Game uh and it depends also of the opponent where spaces can be found we’re really focused in that a lot and I want to see a team grow and I getting Joy about seeing them grow I get joy out of seeing our fans getting excited like it is now it’s

Crazy that you can sell your Stadium three times when you have 51,000 people so those are the exciting things not that I get a quarterfinal or semi-final or whatever it’s not so important for me you talked about the the quality and the resources that Ben have got in terms of

Uh the challenge to you and your coach and staff have you treated these two games any different from from a normal leag game was it different no no if we play against Darton or we play against Benfica the preparation is the same of course there are different

Details where you focus on with the team because you expect some scenario in the game and how they play and how we need to play and where we can find spaces but the preparation is never different never I can perhaps ask James a question yeah

Of course he he will be happy with that because he he was a that he would not get questions today I I’ll be chilling St not just the number the quality of games ranged been play in Europe obviously you’ve get used to that in terms of your leadership role do you

Find that you’re having to uh you know your guys that come into the club prepare them to step up a again or do you think they’ve already been introduced to that as part of the package of plan for Rangers yeah I think it comes part of the part of the package

Um and on the recruitment side of recruiting talented players uh to fit in that environment cuz we want to play playing European football every season um and it’s the way we train every single day that prepares us for the games um so all the squad I know are

All ready for for these competitions and these competitions always suit us really well cuz it’s an always an open game um and yeah the boys are just hungry to to succeed and we that’s what we’ve really been at on on each other from you know the start is pushing each

Other every single day and when these games come you know me sure we deliver on the pitch Jam the man just talked about a culture Jam can you you’re SAT but can you I can go outside if you want to what that culture change has

Been he Ste out line in the five months he’s been here what what’s been different what’s from the captain’s yeah I believe the standards from when the GAA came straight into into the building they’ve you know gone up Monumental and it’s the the the small details that

The gaffa imprints on on the players and everyone’s you know really buying into it um and all the boys are really professional so we’ve got no boys that are stepping out of line we’ve got good characters in the squad so we’re all really jelling together throughout the

Season and it’s all really going well so far and like the gaffa said at the start it’s a story and we’re all we’re all in it together and we just want to continue pushing each other as hard as we can to succeed pH can I ask about players like

James with taking the squad to final before how key will that experience be in your squad tomorrow night not only tomorrow night it’s been key from the beginning I talked about that a few times when the questions came uh it was really important for me also when I

Stepped into the building to know where the fire was or the different fires were so he was the first one I talked with it’s also a logical thing for me so yeah of course it’s key um because football is not PlayStation where you have this controller although

I would like to have it sometimes so in a stadium for sure and at I Brooks with a lot of noise you cannot reach the players all the time so you need experienced players on the pitch who really understand the story also that you can have contact with from the sidelines to

Transmit this message towards the team if you need to change things if the opponent do different things and we need to adapt to that or we need to find spaces in another way so it’s important and I have now three four players on the pitch where I can speak with who

Transmitted to in the team and it’s a crucial thing as a manager to to have those those are like your your right hand on the pitch and uh no I’m really happy about that uh in this these five months that we’ve been working together and you talk about the season as a

Manath but in the short term what could a win tomorrow night do for the squads confident uh for the confidence nothing I think I think the confidence is there we don’t need to raise confidence it would be something really exciting because they will show something towards all

Europe for their career can be also something really special when you do special things like that you come more into attention and like I said um I understand the story here in the club also that uh if players can make a step higher than uh than Rangers

And there’s a good deal for the club you need to accept that also and we need to find other players to replace them in a good way uh so in evenings like this they they can make steps like that but the most important thing is that they

That they understand that it’s not an individual thing to show yourself they can only show themselves if they show themselves as a team if they think about themselves only they will not perform well we’ve been strong already 5 months because it’s been a collective uh on whatever pitch on

Whatever situation with whatever team against whatever team so that we need to continue and they they know really well last two Patrick and incs James heading into this one obviously you’re involved in that EUR League season getting to the final is there anything you learned from That season that you might change

Heading into another one um obviously not losing the final um obviously it’s different you got a different uh Squad um but the same principles are there you know you’ve got to really outwork your opponent um really dial into the details and the Tactical side of what you need to do

Into the game and you know it’s about who wants it more as well so you know I know all all my players are are fully ready for tomorrow and we’ll give it absolute everything to to try and get through to next round question said after the draw was made just underdogs

In the ties is that still the case at a halfway point yeah I think so if you’re realistic yes in my heart no but uh I’m always a realistic guy so but I’m a real realistic guy also who who puts the stand high and and I

Know and I’ve seen that this team can do that I told them also uh before the Benfica games with Bru we played 22 in in Real Madrid and we deserve that at least a point and we could have won that one but this team is better this Rangers team

For me than the team that was there so I believe we can win on a top day where when the Things fall our side we can win against whatever team