Rangers look set to welcome a familiar face back to Ibrox tonight ahead of their UEFA Champions League playoff round first-leg clash with Belgian side Club Brugge.
With former boss and record goalscorer Ally McCoist a regular in the stands, and ex-Rangers player turned legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson recently spotted in Govan, the door has clearly remained open for old faces to return.
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Philippe Clement, who managed Rangers from October 2023 until February of this year, is expected to be among them.
He succeeded Michael Beale and made an immediate impact, guiding the team to the 2023/24 League Cup and hauling them back into the title race.
However, a late-season collapse saw Rangers finish runners-up to Celtic, despite briefly going top after victory over St Johnstone early in 2024.
His second campaign quickly unravelled. After beginning at Hampden, Rangers fell to Dynamo Kyiv in Champions League qualifying and struggled domestically, dropping out of the title picture before Christmas.
Even a New Year Old Firm win at Ibrox couldn’t paper over the cracks, and a shock Scottish Cup defeat to Championship side Queen’s Park, followed by a home loss to St Mirren in February 2025, saw Clement dismissed and replaced by interim boss Barry Ferguson.
Now, with Russell Martin installed as permanent head coach, Clement is tipped to return to Ibrox as a guest.
The Belgian also has ties to tonight’s opponents, having managed Brugge to back-to-back Belgian Pro League titles in 2020 and 2021, as well as the Belgian Super Cup in 2021, before departing for Monaco.
Whether his loyalties lie with his former employers in Glasgow or his compatriots from Bruges remains to be seen, but his presence will only add another intriguing subplot to a pivotal European night at Ibrox.