Thanks for the pep talk, Jim! Clement says Goodwin comments on Rangers’ character will motivate his players ahead of Dundee United clash

Rangers manager Philippe Clement insists his players have been fired up by Dundee United boss Jim Goodwin raising the issue of their character ahead of Saturday afternoon’s showdown at Ibrox.

Goodwin has called on his team to create ‘nervous tension’ in the stadium and get the home fans ‘on the backs’ of Rangers who have experienced a turbulent first few months of the season.

United are just three points behind third-placed Rangers in the Premiership table with Goodwin observing that their ‘character has been called into question numerous times’.

Clement appeared irked by the comments but is certain his players can nullify United’s efforts to frustrate them.

‘Yes, I’m confident about that,’ said Clement. ‘I like when other people motivate my players.

‘Dundee United is a tough opponent who are having a really good season but we’re going to throw everything from our side to win the game.’

Clement insists his side won’t lack for motivation ahead of their match with United

While Rangers have won all four of their league games at Ibrox since returning to the stadium after having to start the campaign at Hampden, many of their performances have been laboured.

Their 1-0 win over Hearts two weeks ago, when they were unable to build on an early goal from Cyriel Dessers and had to grind it out in front of an increasingly disgruntled home crowd, was a case in point.

Clement has stressed to his players that they must embrace the responsibility of keeping the fans onside.

‘Today, I showed the players the first half of the Hearts game,’ he said. ‘The fans were amazing, there was a really good atmosphere in the stadium. They were behind the team, they were applauding, they were happy. They were excited.

‘In the second half, when we lowered our level, then this energy goes down. It’s in the hands of us, together on the pitch, to get the right atmosphere.’

As he prepares for a pivotal spell of fixtures both domestically and in the Europa League, Clement has welcomed the promotion of recruitment chief Nils Koppen to the role of technical director at Rangers earlier this week.

Clement believes it will free him up to focus solely on maximising the performance levels of his team.

‘Some things that came on my plate in the last couple of months don’t need to come on the plate of a manager at any club in the world,’ he said.

‘It was a strange period where there has been a kind of vacuum at the club with people stepping in, in the interim role. It’s positive there’s clarity in that way now and it will help me.’