Philippe Clement must axe Rangers man after 12% display last night, he could cost us v Aberdeen

After his disastrous performance against Real Betis,

Philippe Clement will need to use his axe on Borna Barisic when Rangers play

Aberdeen in the Scottish League Cup final.

Rangers defeated the Spanish La Liga team in an exciting thriller to win the group and

go to the tournament’s round of sixteen, which takes place in March.

They maintained their remarkable unbeaten record under

Clement by winning their first-ever road game against a Spanish team thanks to goals from Abdallah Sima,

Cyriel Dessers, and a late goal from Kemar Roofe.

The victory on Thursday night (December 14) perfectly captures

the amazing improvement made under the Belgian coach,

who has managed at Ibrox without ever losing since his arrival in October.

With 10 wins and three draws in his 13 games in charge,

this is a truly remarkable accomplishment.

But when the Gers play Aberdeen in the ViaPlay Cup final on Sunday,

December 17, they will undoubtedly be starting their most important match of recent memory.

Rangers are dealing with a number of injuries ahead of Sunday’s marquee match,

but Clement may be forced to make some significant adjustments, including benching Barisic.

It’s easy to say that the Rangers veteran is playing for his future at

the team as the Croatian’s contract at Ibrox expires in June 2024.

Talks over a potential new contract are allegedly already underway [Dean Jones, 10 December].

That doesn’t mean a new contract is definite,

though, and given his performance against Betis on Thursday,

it won’t come as a surprise if Rangers decide to consider bids in January.

Looking at his game statistics, it’s easy to understand why the Croat,

who began the game at the Benito Villamarín Stadium with a 6.4/10 rating according to SofaScore,

was given the joint third-lowest score of any player.

In a terrible performance, Barisic gave up the ball fifteen times,

finished only 58% of his passes effectively,

made one crucial pass, completed a horrendous 12% of his crosses,

33% of his long balls, and lost 100% of his dribbling duels.

Although the Gers’ chances of winning their first major trophy in

two long years could be severely harmed by such performances, he may be saved by the fact that Ridvan Yilmaz,

his positional opponent, also rarely pulls up trees.

Clement certainly faces a huge decision ahead.

Get more related news on https://dailysportnews.co.uk