Rangers transfers: Clement lifts lid on 'not nicest thing', signals from captaincy group and Cifuentes future

Philippe Clement says "it is not the nicest thing" waiting for players to leave Rangers so he can replenish his squad with new faces, but admitted that he has to be patient with the club's squad remodelling process.

The Belgian manager has brought in eight new permanent signings this summer, but it is clear he is not finished there yet in terms on incomings. However, further transfers into the building will depend on out-of-favour stars going out of the exit door, with Rangers seemingly no further forward in offloading players such as Todd Cantwell and Ianis Hagi.

Ahead of Tuesday's Champions League match against Dynamo Kyiv, Clement was asked if it was proving difficult to get players out so he can get players in. "It is not the nicest thing but you need to adapt," replied Clement. "I told you, I am not the accountant. And the club don’t ask me to pay for everything. I know my role in the story and the role in the story is to get the best out of the squad that is here and to make the squad better for the future, to make it better also that we have more players that have the capability to grow here and gain interest from other clubs to sell them for the future. That plan is clear and I know my role in that."

Rangers manager Philippe Clement prepares for Tuesday's match against Dynamo Kiev at Hampden. | SNS Group

Despite the massive change sweeping through Rangers right now, Clement has not detected any disharmony within those that are part of his plans and those who are on the periphery. "I cannot say that anybody affects the training pitch or the atmosphere because then it is easy to put them out of the building also," he explained. "That has not been the case. Everybody who has been training here was with the right attitude and also in the right way in the dressing room. I had a talk with the captain group about that a while ago that they had to keep an eye on that and give me signals if it is not the case. It is not. There are no problems around that."

Reports suggest that Jose Cifuentes is on the verge of joining Greek side Aris Thessaloniki, but Clement is not aware of developments with the Ecuadorian midfielder, who was on loan at Cruzeiro for the second half of last season. "I see everything in the newspapers also," said Clement. "I didn’t hear anything that something is done with somebody. That is a pity. We have several here still in the building, or like Cifu not in the building, and because of that also it stops to get other players. For the moment I didn’t hear that somebody officially is going somewhere else."

Rangers get huge boost on future of key player as aeroplane discussions revealed