Nacho Novo witnessed Philippe Clement destroy Real Betis in the Europa League by putting on a technical masterclass in his own Spain.

I realized right then that the new Rangers would not hesitate to lead his team into Parkhead on Saturday. Former Gers favorite Novo acknowledges that he has been really impressed with how Clement has managed the burden of leading an Ibrox team beset by injuries and lacking confidence to a 16-game winning streak that includes winning their group stage of the Europa League and the Viaplay Cup.

Rangers have also reduced Celtic’s lead in the Premiership. Despite the fact that the bad weather prevented them from closing the gap to two points with a game remaining on Wednesday—the match against Ross County was canceled because the Dingwall team was unable to make the treacherous trip down the A9—they will go across the city on Saturday with a strong sense of self-belief in both themselves and their manager. Novo, who returned to Britain after a stint as a coach in the United States, has been closely following the events at Ibrox. He is convinced that their ability to defeat Real Betis at home earlier this month and then defeat Aberdeen at Hampden has been crucial in stoking confidence that they can triumph at Celtic Park.

It goes without saying that, as a Spanishman who follows La Liga closely, he informed Record Sport that Rangers would face a difficult evening because, going into the game in Seville, Betis had not lost at home all season. There, not even Real Madrid or Atletico could prevail. Even with a fantastic coach like Manuel Pellegrini in charge, Betis is not an easy club to visit.

“Clement has demonstrated his ability to research the competition and devise a strategy to win the game. When Rangers moved forward on the counterattack, it appeared as though they could score every time, but he executed it flawlessly against Betis. The players would have thought, “Wow, this guy really knows his stuff,” when they saw how they killed Betis that evening.

“They would have trailed Clement in any case, since the team performed incredibly well in his first game after replacing Michael Beale. However, what happened that night would have led them to think they can succeed wherever. Following that, typically following a significant European encounter, the team may feel a little flat.

“With all of the travel, the physical and mental preparation for the game.

However, Rangers had to quickly return for the League Cup Final, and they succeeded in doing so. Since we were facing Queen of the South from a lower league, everyone believed the Scottish Cup final, which we had to play immediately after the UEFA Cup final in 2008, would be simple. However, I can attest to how difficult that is. However, it wasn’t simple. It was a very difficult game, but in the end, we won 3-2.

I saw indicators in the first half of the League Cup final between Rangers and Aberdeen that things were a touch flat, but in the second half, they pulled off a victory against a strong Aberdeen club that can be dangerous when they counterattack. This is something that great Rangers have done time and time again. Because it occurred so early in Clement’s Rangers career and may signal the beginning of something extraordinary, it was a significant victory for him.

The Ross County match’s postponement may have been a godsend for the Gers, allowing Clement’s fatigued players six days off in between games and providing Connor Goldson and other players more time to heal from injuries. However, Novo believes that Clement will have his players running hard in the lead-up to the pivotal match in the East End.

“I really like what I’ve seen of him so far,” he continued. He needs time, but there isn’t much of it when you work at Rangers! Therefore, it means a lot to him to have won a cup in just a few months.

Few people can handle the pressure of managing the Rangers because it’s such a demanding job. Someone like Souness could. And Walter, naturally. They were capable managers, and it appears that Clement will share their management style.

Although we appear good, he will believe that nothing has been accomplished thus far. He’ll keep them alert because it’s possible to get caught when you’re relaxed.

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