Rangers CEO Patrick Stewart has confirmed that under-fire manager Philippe Clement has the board's backing for now, but insists that results must improve with no "cast iron guarantees" offered to the Belgian.
Clement has come under increased pressure following a disappointing run of results, with the Gers winning just two of their last eight matches in all competitions.
One of those two victories actually came against Old Firm rivals Celtic (3-0) at Ibrox on January 2, but they have since drawn their last two Scottish Premiership games with Hibernian and Dundee, leaving them a whopping 18 points behind the Hoops at the summit.
Clement extended his contract at Rangers until 2028 last summer, but there have been suggestions that the Glaswegian giants could decide to part ways with the 50-year-old amidst growing frustration from the club's supporters.
However, new CEO Stewart - who took up his role at Ibrox less than a month ago after leaving Manchester United - has reassured Clement that his job is safe for now, insisting that "changing a manager isn't a silver bullet solution".
Speaking at a Scottish media briefing, Stewart said: "There's been a lot of talk about results, a lot of talk about the manager, and I know that the spotlight is on chairman Fraser Thornton and myself, but particularly on me. I need to make some tough decisions - but I'm committed to making the right ones for Rangers, not just the popular ones.
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Clement to remain as Rangers manager... for now
"So cutting to the chase, we're backing Philippe at this time as a board. It's about taking a deeper look at the issues, addressing those problems and staying focused on building a stronger future for the club. Changing a manager isn't a silver bullet solution.
"You know where I've worked previously, and that isn't something that has been effective there. It's not effective at a lot of football clubs where there's constant change of manager. What I do need to do, and what the board are supporting me with, is uncovering the underlying issues and addressing those."
Stewart has confirmed that he spoke with Clement last night (Friday), while a "root and branch review of the entire football department" will begin on Monday - lasting between six to 12 weeks - with external assistance from football experts called upon to help tackle the club's issues both on and off the pitch.
"If we rush and react every time there's some poor results, we're in danger of just being back in the same place in a year's time or 18 months' time or however long," Stweart added. "But I want to be clear, I'm not saying everything is fine. The fans are frustrated, I get that.
"We're also frustrated. If I look at the away results, it's not what's expected for Rangers, so we're working with Philippe to address consistency issues - but I'm also not going to speculate on what happens if results don't improve.
"I was with Philippe last night, and we discussed the need, the imperative, for results to improve. If results don't improve, obviously I can't give Philippe any cast-iron guarantees. He and I have both been around football long enough to know that isn't the case.
"Equally, I'm not going to get into how many games does Philippe have to save his job, that's not what we're about. Football is results-based and I'm not offering any guarantees as to length of tenure because it's all about improving results.
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Clement aware that "results have to improve"
"Philippe and I have had that discussion so it would be foolhardy of me to say we retain any employee irrespective of results. Of course it's results-based but equally we all want to work together to improve that and that's what we're focused on at the moment.
"We're about helping Philippe to identify why is there the inconsistency and let's address that. If anything, changing a manager would be the easy decision, because a lot of supporters are calling for that. I've seen the statements, but to reiterate, it's a results-orientated business, so we know that results have to improve."
Rangers announced a net loss of £17.2m in the past financial year, but Stwart is adamant that the club are not sticking with Clement because they cannot afford to sack him.
"We wouldn't make any decision on a manager based on financial reasons, absolutely not," Stewart insisted.
Discussing whether Rangers have plans in place should they decide to part ways with Clement, Stewart added: "Every good well-run club should have a succession plan in place for key positions. Whether it's manager, whether it's me, whether it's a chair, that's something that I'm looking at introducing across the board."
Clement has won 48, drawn 16 and lost 12 of his 76 games in charge of Rangers since joining the club in October 2023, and he won the Scottish League Cup last season.
Oliver Thomas
