Rangers will earn Extra £30m in latest twist

Rangers will earn Extra £30m in latest champions league twist

Philippe Clement’s former Genk chairman feels the Rangers manager has the £30 million Champions League pedigree.

Belgian manager Clement, 49, has rushed into Scottish football and is threatening to sweep everything in front of him following a transformative four months in Glasgow.

The former AS Monaco manager took over a Rangers squad that lacked confidence and creativity and rebuilt them into Scottish Premiership leaders.

Cutting a seven point gap at the top of the table, Philippe Clement has already lifted the League Cup – no matter what Alan Stubbs says – whilst the Europa League Last 16 beckons.

But for Genk chairman Peter Croonen, the Belgian coach almost single-handedly hauled two of the country’s top clubs into the Champions League group stages.

Philippe Clement has Champions League pedigree

In an interview with the Daily Record, Croonen claims that it was the influence of Philippe Clement which guided firstly KRC Genk and then Club Brugge to the Champions League.

Clement guided Genk to the Belgian Pro League title after only 18 months in the manager’s chair before moving to Club Brugge and winning three consecutive league trophies.

Peter Croonen has hailed the influence of the now Rangers manager on the country’s game and reckons without the baldy Belgian nether Genk nor Club Brugge would’ve been dining at European football’s top table.

“If I’m really honest, I can say I believe – to an important extent – we only played in the Champions League because Philippe was our head coach,” Croonen said in a statement.

“I can say the same about Brugge. I doubt they would have played three Champions League games if it hadn’t been for him.

Philippe’s history shows that in his second year as head coach, he led us to championships.

“He went to Brugge and crowned them winners for three years running. As a result, he is one of just two coaches in Belgian football history to win four straight championships with different teams.

“So his impact on the teams he coaches is quite crucial. I’m not shocked he’s had such success in Glasgow already.”

An extra £30 million is on the line in the Rangers title chase.

Peter Croonen also regrets Philippe Clement’s departure from Genk after only one title, despite the club’s efforts to keep the manager.

Clement clearly has a major fan in the Genk chairman, as he claims that “the longer Rangers can keep Philippe the better for them”.

Rangers fans reading the interview will undoubtedly take note of the statements on the Champions League, which will be restructured next season.

More matches and a larger group stage mean that qualification will be worth an additional £30 million to each participant, which is eye-watering money for Rangers.

The Scottish Premiership champions will advance directly to European football’s elite event, and the circumstance has added financial spice to this year’s title race.

According to Peter Croonen, Rangers have the perfect guy in place not just to compete for the title, but also to lead them to the Champions League land of milk and honey.

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