Philippe Clement asks Rangers fans for title trust as crazy Genk campaign proves he can lead them through the madness

Have you heard the one about the Spaniard, the Ukrainian and the biomechanics professor?

Philippe Clement can grin about it now but this time back in 2019, it was certainly no laughing matter for the big Belgian. With his then Genk side flying high and on course for the club’s first domestic league crown in eight years, events appeared to be conspiring against the Smurfs and their manager.

First, his star Spanish playmaker Pozuelo suddenly announced he was off to the MLS outfit Toronto on a megabucks deal. With the European transfer window closed, there was no way of replacing a man who had provided seven goals and 18 assists. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Clement was then faced with losing another of his most influential stars, Ruslan Malinovskyi, for a whopping nine games after the Ukrainian midfielder was handed a hefty ban for kicking out at an opponent.

Disaster was averted, however, when the man now leading Rangers’ chase for glory drafted in a top university expert in body mechanics to prove the incident was purely accidental. In the end, Clement had the last laugh as the ban was overturned and Malinovskyi freed to play a defining role with four goals in the run in to what ended up becoming the Ibrox gaffer’s first trophy as a boss after holding off a late charge from Club Brugge.

Clement raised that tale as evidence of the kind of maddening events that can take on a life of their own during the crazed, pressurised business end of a title race. The message was clear — he’s been the course and distance before and when he says he knows where the pitfalls are, it’s best to trust him.

“My experience will help me, I know what it is,” said the 49-year-old ahead of tonight’s trip to Rugby Park for what is bound to be