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Philippe Clement has spoken to the media following the 4-1 win over Kilmarnock. Here is every word he had to say.
What were your thoughts on the game?
A crazy start, but we had a really good start to the game. We were fast, we were strong in the duals, we were winning the duals, we were playing forward and creating chances. The VAR thought we should have had a penalty because he asked the referee to the screen. Apparently the referee didn’t agree and it stays a difficult rule for me. If I look back at the penalty we get against Kilmarnock here then this one is much more clear. You need to accept that in that moment and go on. Then you have a situation where the first ball in your box is a goal in a really unlucky way. You need to react as a team and the team did that and that’s what we are working on for a long time. Several times they have come back from a difficult situation and we kept on pushing. We did that all game long to get the best result and that’s three points against a Kilmarnock team we know and spoke about the stat before the game. Since December 3 they only lost twice in the league and that was against Rangers and nobody else. So to do that three times in a row is a huge achievement.
Does the comeback prove you will fight until the end of the title race?
We are going to fight until the very end, but I didn’t need that game today for that. I spoke about that also last week and spoke about that also after Dundee. We were all disappointed about the two results and that’s what the team did. For me that’s the basic of being a team and becoming a good team, is to never give up. The team did that already several times and they know they can do it. We will go on with that mindset until the last second of the season.
Is there a frustration you didn’t score more goals?
Frustration is a bad word if you score four goals. Of course you want more goals like any manager. But I know also that teams struggle against a team of ten who are all defending to create these opportunities. So in that way we did a lot of things good and scored good goals. We missed a penalty and it should have been five. Efficiency is never perfect. You have maybe one or two games in your career as a manager where every chance is a goal. I didn’t have this moment yet, so I am hoping maybe next week or the next couple of months it will happen once.
Have you spoken to the team about goal difference or is that for the very last games?
I think it is now the moment to speak about that. If we focused on that before these games it was not of big importance because you focus more and more and more on that and first of all it is about getting the three points. It is now for next week to go full for three points and after that we can speak about those things.
Was Leon Balogun injured?
Yes he was injured that is why I had to replace him. I hope it is a small muscle injury. We will see in the next couple of days. But he struggled too much to continue.
How do you feel about the Celtic game?
I am looking forward to that and to be honest as a manager I would love that it was tomorrow instead of next week but that is maybe not so good for my players! We are really hungry for that game. Six months ago we were seven points behind and now we are three points behind and we can come equal. The team has already done a lot of steps and now it is about making the next step.
What did you think of Rodgers’ comment about having some fun?
That it is something that I would never say about an opponent. But okay, we will see.
Mind games, or what did you make of it…?
That it’s not really respectful towards my team. That is what I think. So I will never say things like that about an opponent.
Were you pleased with Ben Davies?
I used his name last week or the week before in the press conference. When we spoke about Connor’s injury I said Leon and Ben had been working hard these last weeks after their injuries, to come back. It was an unhappy situation for me that I could not give them the minutes because we were struggling in the offensive positions and I had to make changes there. I knew before the game that I had to make four changes there so you cannot then change a centre-back to start with somebody when you don’t know if he can play 90 minutes. I was happy I could give him these minutes. He is there now because he has been training well all this time and he has been really professional. I have to say that about all the squad. Everyone has been working really hard in the last couple of months and then you get the reward of being ready to step into a game and having confidence and quality. A lot of training is even more difficult than some games for the players so the rise in quality in that way.
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