Philippe Clement believes midfielder John Lundstram has assumed the role of a coach on the pitch after inspiring Rangers at home and abroad in recent days.

Lundstram collected the second medal of his Ibrox career on Sunday as Clement's side beat Aberdeen to win the Viaplay Cup final at Hampden. That triumph came just days after the stunning victory over Real Betis that saw Rangers progress to the last 16 of the Europa League.

Lundstram has been an influential and consistent performer throughout Clement's tenure and has spoken glowingly about the impact that the Belgian has had since he succeeded Michael Beale in the dugout. In the aftermath of their finest moment together so far, those feelings are more than reciprocated.

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Clement revealed post-match that he is considering offering Lundstram a new contract that will keep him at Ibrox beyond the end of his current deal. And the Scouser's role at the heart of Clement's side has now been detailed after he partnered Dujon Sterling and gave Rangers the foundations for success against Aberdeen.

"I cannot say anything about how he was in the past," Clement said. "I can only speak about now. He is a very important player for the team, not only in what he is doing himself but also in his coaching and helping the others.

"With Dujon [on Sunday], I do not know how many midfielders he has played with already – there’s been Nico, Cifo, Ryan and Tom and now Dujon and they are all performing well. And it has something to do with Lunny, because his coaching is good and he helps the team.

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"He is an intelligent guy who understands the story. In the way I want to play football, and dominant football, you need to find spaces, but every game is different. It depends how the opponents play.

"You need players who understand what to do with and without the ball. He is one of the guys who understands that really fast, and those are really important things for me."