Ryan Jack has criticised Philippe Clement for how he was treated during his final season at Rangers, saying his own teammates backed him over the 'disgraceful' end to his seven-year stay at Ibrox.
The midfielder made nearly 200 appearances for the Light Blues after joining on a free transfer from Aberdeen in 2017, including 19 outings in the title-winning season of 2020/21 under Steven Gerrard. But after Clement's arrival in October 2023, the former Scotland international was used sparingly and missed several matches with a muscle injury.
Left Out for Dundee Clash
Now 34, Jack went into the final months of the season knowing his contract was up and says attempts to speak directly to his manager about his future fell on deaf ears. In an interview with The Herald, he said he knew his time at Rangers was over after being left out of the matchday squad for a clash with Dundee at Ibrox, a game he felt convinced him Clement would not succeed in the dugout.
Jack, now without a club after a two-year spell in Turkey with Esenler Erokspor, said: "I took along all my family that night thinking, 'it might be my last home game'. I had been to the hotel all day with the team all days and had lunch and a sleep before the bus to Ibrox."
Teammates' Reaction
"We got to the stadium pre-match and nobody has said a word to me, so I am thinking I am in the squad and might play. That was after seven years of graft and putting my life into every day and playing through pain barriers, because that's what you do."
"That night against Dundee was when I thought that it was not going to work out for Clement at Rangers. Because when other people see you treat players who had been there for seven years like that then they say, 'nah, he's miles off it.'"
"Players are human and it's like any walk of life. If your boss does that you think, 'nah, that's not on.' I actually remember guys like Jack Butland, Conor Goldson and James Tavernier and John Lundstram saying to me, 'that's an absolute disgrace what the manager has done to you.' When that happened the penny dropped that I was definitely going to be leaving for sure."
