What would you consider to be a satisfactory achievement for Big Phil in his first season?

As disappointing as the league is turning out, the only reason we are in a title race is because of him. This team was gone when he arrived and he's eeked every last drop out of them to the point where I don't think a lot of them have much left to give, hence the dowturn lately.

He's exceeded my expectations TBH. Two cups would give us optimism before yet another summer rebuild.

If we don't win the league this year I'll be gutted but like Gerrard at the start of his tenure, Phil shouldn't be blamed for the mistakes of the past that was hampering him from day one. I think he's shown more than enough to put our trust in him going forward. Having a structure in the background with Koppen and the new scout should also help.

He does need to beat Celtic this season though. We cannot go into next season with him still not having beat them and especially with the first OF at their place. The longer we go without beating them the more it'll hang over him and used as a stick to beat him with.
 
Cooper's left peg said:
If, as i expect, we don't win the league even a Scottish Cup will mean it has be another disappointing season.

Winning domestic cups when you don't win the league always makes it a hollow season.
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Winning 2 cups is progress considering the state we were in when he took charge - many had the league over in September and the rest of the season was about stability and rebuilding- nothing has changed
 
joseph said:
Considering where we were in September and how far in front they were

To even have us challenging wi5 games remaining is an achievement in itself- look how far he has taken us from the Beale era with the exact same players

Next season will be about the players Phil signs not what he inherited from Beale’s disastrous signings
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Summer will be full of optimism with however this all pans out but we must be full tilt for the Treble, far better players have never had this opportunity
 
SDF said:
As disappointing as the league is turning out, the only reason we are in a title race is because of him. This team was gone when he arrived and he's eeked every last drop out of them to the point where I don't think a lot of them have much left to give, hence the dowturn lately.

He's exceeded my expectations TBH. Two cups would give us optimism before yet another summer rebuild.

If we don't win the league this year I'll be gutted but like Gerrard was at the start of his tenure, Phil shouldn't be blamed for the mistakes of the past that was hampering him from day one. I think he's shown more than enough to put our trust in him going forward. Having a structure in the background

He does need to beat Celtic this season though. We cannot go into next season with him still not having beat them and especially with the first OF at their place. The longer we go without beating them the more it'll hang over him and used as a stick to beat him with.
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Correct in everything you say
 
Viatrophy said:
The black mark is against the players who have shit the bed time and time again. The fact that Clement got them in that position from where we were when Beale got sacked is a minor miracle.
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I don't really buy this to be honest, Clement only gets the plaudits when results are good, when it goes dreadfully wrong though, it's not Clement it's the players?

Clement has to take a big share of the shambles which has occurred recently, just like he he takes the praise when it goes well.
 
Johnny Yen said:
I don't really buy this to be honest, Clement only gets the plaudits when results are good, when it goes dreadfully wrong though, it's not Clement it's the players?

Clement has to take a big share of the shambles which has occurred recently, just like he he takes the praise when it goes well.
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You'd need to be incredibly daft, churlish (or both possibly) not to understand the point people are making.
 
Topped a Europa group, won a trophy and in the hunt for two more.

He has already surpassed my expectations, this is a poor group being dragged along by a good manager.

I don't think any of us can fully appreciate how hard it is to come in mid-season, with a £0 budget and salvage this season.

This is one of the hardest jobs in football for me, huge expectations, your main rival and Euro teams are far richer and you need to win or else you're out.
 
Clement got us into a position to be in a title race. That was great, but him and the players have contributed to leave our chances now hanging by a thread.

I'm uncomfortable with the fact that it seems Clement is not allowed to be questioned on anything and that he is completely devoid of coming under scrutiny.

He seems like he is a decent manager, but he is not necessarily a 'great' manager. If he was he wouldn't be managing in the SPHell.

No league title = a disappointing season. We are Rangers, not St Johnstone
 
julian candy said:
You'd need to be incredibly daft, churlish (or both possibly) not to understand the point people are making.
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I get that, my point still stands too does it not?

The boss takes all the plaudits when results go well, but when we lose to Motherwell and Ross County he is absolved of any blame and the players are to blame?

That's basically what some folk are saying?
 
Loud and proud said:
A league title.
Treble would exceed my expectations.
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That would really melt many brains if we actually go on and do that , some of our fans would be deleting many posts of shite they have written by not supporting until it’s either won or lost and that’s not the case right now
 
Johnny Yen said:
I get that, my point still stands too does it not?

The boss takes all the plaudits when results go well, but when we lose to Motherwell and Ross County he is absolved of any blame and the players are to blame?

That's basically what some folk are saying?
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I don't think you do understand it to be honest. Nobody is saying it has been perfect, or he's immune to criticism, but he's pretty much wrung everything he can out of a pretty ordinary squad that has been decimated at points by injury. Nobody expected us to be in this position. Not a single supporter.

We're actually still in with a shout of winning the league by the way, it isn't over. If we do finish 2nd there will be plenty of opportunities for people to question to the manager (which is what some people are impatiently waiting for).
 
barcelonabear said:
Where we were? Where we were was top of the league and favs for the title so it’s a massive failure to lose the league! 2 cups would have been a great success in the murty era
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I meant from where we were when PC came in.
7 points behind & looked down & out.
 
People got too caught in the drama of us pulling it back and forget where we started and the serial bottlers we have in this squad.

Phil is a victim of his own success here, the title race was over in October but 6 months later, people are now disappointed the same squad and group of players may have blown it.

We need to take stock and realise it's fucking remarkable we are even in this position.

One cup in the bag, topped our group in the EL, clawed back a huge deficit over the winter, managed to go top of the league for a while and still in with a shout of a domestic treble in April.

Clement has pulled off something miraculous even getting us here. If it all goes tits up over the next month I hope that fact is remembered.

The real test for me is the in the summer. This group of players clearly can't be relied on. I really hope Phil has the balls to make some big calls when it comes to who stays and who goes.
 
I’d have been delighted with the 2 Cups and saving face in the League when he took over.

Feels like we might’ve thrown a treble away from where we found ourselves.
 
julian candy said:
I don't think you do understand it to be honest. Nobody is saying it has been perfect, or he's immune to criticism, but he's pretty much wrung everything he can out of a pretty ordinary squad that has been decimated at points by injury. Nobody expected us to be in this position. Not a single supporter.

We're actually still in with a shout of winning the league by the way, it isn't over. If we do finish 2nd there will be plenty of opportunities for people to question to the manager (which is what some people are impatiently waiting for).
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Ixnay on the condescension, I understand it perfectly well thank you very much.

There are countless threads in which the gaffer is lavished with praise and rightly so, when it goes tits up then the blame shifts and it's the players who are to blame.

That's the long and short of it.
 
Winning a cup, getting us through the Europa league group and closing the gap from the one who took over would be satisfactory.

He has achieved that, he has done a good job no matter what happens in the next few weeks, but we will have people wanting him sacked if we don’t win the league.
 
Johnny Yen said:
Ixnay on the condescension, I understand it perfectly well thank you very much.

There are countless threads in which the gaffer is lavished with praise and rightly so, when it goes tits up then the blame shifts and it's the players who are to blame.

That's the long and short of it.
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You clearly don't, but it's fine.
 
Many unusually balanced opinions on this thread.

He's over delivered so far with a squad we all agreed was dross.

A very strong final 6 weeks please big man.
 
Hard to say this coming from where we were a month or so ago.

When he came in not losing the league by 20+ points would have been an achievement with a cup victory.

Can't help but feel disappointed now not winning the league.

overall from where he came in two cups would be a great achievement and I would have probably laughed if you had said that we would have that at the seasons end when Beale left.
 
For me it's not really what we win. Its more that champions league money. Without it makes next season a lot harder. So in that way we need the league. If both us and them didnt get into the ucl then id be satisfied with both cups and say the leagues priority next year. But im not sure thats true if they get into ucl and we dont get through qualifers
 
More fight in our last 6 games for me regardless of whether we win the league or not. And a recognition that the likes of Goldsons time at the club is over.

If we look this laggy, play the same base team as featured at the weekend and end with no more silverware, and then hand out new contracts to the likes of Jack, Lundstram or Roofe then I will be very negative going into the summer!
 
Betis was a terrific result. It became a necessity, though, because we couldn’t beat Aris at home.

We’re in a title race because of Celtic’s failings - we’ve taken 1pt from 6 under Clement. A Postecoglou team would be out of sight.

We have a poor squad hindered by injuries and yet a treble is a possibility. But the team has reverted to type and the manager has failed to address that.

A mixed bag, to be honest.
 
With these players?, he did well winning the LC. Anything else is a massive bonus. He’ll have it all to do next season 6/7 out and probably the same amount in.
 
I'd be happy with the 2 cups ,he was punching above his weight in the league with the absolute dross he inherited as a squad.
 
BigN said:
What do you think would constitute a satisfactory outcome to the season given that our new manager took over the reigns mid season: 1 Cup, 2 Cups, 1 Cup and League, Treble?
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From the position Beale had us in, the manager has worked wonders but my patience will be sorely tested if we lost this league due to losing to Motherwell at home and Ross County.

I don't want to hear any more 'moral victory' p1sh either. There's nothing victorious about gifting your title rivals a goal within 30 seconds of kick off.

Unlike his captain, I get the feeling with the manger, lessons will be learned.

My overall feeling is, if we lose this league, then despite all the good the manager has done, it will be tinged with a huge dollop of disappointment.

Harsh? Very possibly, but there you go.
 
When he arrived; a cup where possible.

He did so well to drive a cadence of winning, and Celtic had a downturn, so expectations (and hope) sky rocketed.
 
Win all the remaining games and we win the lot! There is no reason not to hope for the best, however with some of the performances the team have delivered over the years, there is a nagging element that says they struggle to stand up when it really matters. The caveat to that is that we have already won one cup, the one that eluded us the longest, and have it all in our own hands. In Big Phil I trust!
 
League and league cup as a minimum I’m afraid. Anything else would now be a disappointment from where we were a couple of weeks ago.
 
He's been a success so.far imo.going into the split possibly behind by the smallest margin.Yes it could have been better.but the players take the blame for that imo.Its the most successful league campaign bar 55 for 12 years.
 
Honestly Phil has exceeded expectation by bringing us back to a title race. Butland aside this squad is far from vintage and if we win anything else great.
 
McCoist’sTinHat said:
To have the chance to really put our foots on Celtic’s throat and go 5 points clear with a home win with no away fans, to then being a point behind (assuming we win tonight) is the flip side of that.

What a desperate state of affairs to be claiming ‘massive achievements’ when Celtic are giving away points like sweeties to Killie, Hearts and others.
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Why you making up your own questions? The thread was about him coming in at the mid season point (when he was 7 points behind) and asking what we would have viewed as achievement.
 
BigN said:
What do you think would constitute a satisfactory outcome to the season given that our new manager took over the reigns mid season: 1 Cup, 2 Cups, 1 Cup and League, Treble?
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After the 3-1 debacle against Aberdeen, if anyone had said we'd win the League Cup, top our EL group, have the title in our own hands in the middle of April and have a Scottish Cup semi against Hearts coming up, they'd have bitten your hand off, then called the men in white coats. If we fall short in the league, the cup or both, then of course it will be massively disappointing and a huge anticlimax, but given the starting position, the squad he's had to work with and horrendous run of injuries, I think the manager has already done as much and probably more, than we could have reasonably expected back in October. I think he knows the squad needs a massive overhaul in summer, so the time to judge properly will be this time next year.
 
Audubon Blue said:
At beginning of the season a League Cup might have been acceptable.

However, expectations rise as the team improves. The League Cup isn't good enough now.

We were ahead in the League and now we're chasing.

I want the League. We won't get it.

Where is the team that gubbed Real Betis ?
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We flew out the traps and swept Hearts aside. The atmosphere was incredible. The players clearly reckoned the league would just fall into our lap.
 
Cooper's left peg said:
Clement got us into a position to be in a title race. That was great, but him and the players have contributed to leave our chances now hanging by a thread.

I'm uncomfortable with the fact that it seems Clement is not allowed to be questioned on anything and that he is completely devoid of coming under scrutiny.

He seems like he is a decent manager, but he is not necessarily a 'great' manager. If he was he wouldn't be managing in the SPHell.

No league title = a disappointing season. We are Rangers, not St Johnstone
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Hanging by a thread FFS, the absolute drivel from the negative loyal on here is mind numbing. We've won one cup, every chance we will win a second and after tonight I we'll be 1 whole point behind Celtic, with plenty to play yet.

Hanging by a thread.
 
If this was asked when he was first appointed, I think most would have accepted the league was gone, so League Cup minimum which now he has achieved might feel underwhelming if that is all we will get.

Because of how he has led us since taking over & closed the gap, had us top of the league it changes expectations.

Would be satisfied with the 2 cups, considering how far adrift we were, however, may put more pressure on him next season if we do miss out on the league. Refuse to give up on it until mathematically impossible though.
 
Albus said:
Hanging by a thread FFS, the absolute drivel from the negative loyal on here is mind numbing. We've won one cup, every chance we will win a second and after tonight I we'll be 1 whole point behind Celtic, with plenty to play yet.

Hanging by a thread.
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You don't think out title chances are hanging by a thread ?? Really??

4 points behind, 1 game in hand, a trip to the Piggery to come, worse goal difference and the absolute state of our team at the moment from back to front.

Fantasy stuff.
 
McCoist’sTinHat said:
The league title - plain and simple. The cups are decoration and make a nice double or treble, but if we don’t win the league then the season is a failure.

PC gets the credit for getting us into the lead (game in hand notwithstanding) with 7 games to play.

If picking up 1/9 points from 2 home games v Motherwell, Celtic and a trip to Dingwall ultimately costs us the title, then we’ll have capitulated when you can see the finish line.
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Agreed, the cups are a bonus the league is what we crave
 
Cooper's left peg said:
You don't think out title chances are hanging by a thread ?? Really??

4 points behind, 1 game in hand, a trip to the Piggery to come, lose goal difference and the absolute state of our team at the moment from back to front.

Fantasy stuff.
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1 point behind after tonight, after tonight absolutely not. You had it over in September and October too, it wasn't then either and isn't now.

Keep pushing the ultra negative side in the hope you'll get it right eventually
 
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