There was not a subject that Philippe Clement discussed more during his first months at Ibrox than the injury curse that plagued his Rangers side.

The Belgian saw his squad decimated and his silverware chances impacted as every area of the team was impacted. A repeat this term would cause just as many problems for Clement and he needs his alterations in processes and people to pay dividends for Rangers.

“We have done a lot,” Clement said when asked what he had put in place to change the injury situation this summer. “It is maybe some interesting thing for next time, I can show you things. I have some numbers in my head.

"We did 15 per cent more distance in the training than the year before, we did 71 per cent more sprint distance in the pre-season, we did 70 per cent more high-intensity runs, we did much more prevention work with the players.”

Read more: Check all the Rangers transfer news & rumours throughout the transfer window

Oscar Cortes

Clement spoke ahead of the trip to Tynecastle about his confidence that Rangers would not suffer a repeat of the injury curse that undermined their silverware ambitions last term. Just 24 hours later, he saw Cortes ruled out after being crocked in the capital.

Cortes received treatment on the pitch before returning to the dressing room at the interval. Minutes after the restart, he had to be replaced after suffering pain in his knee and Clement hinted that the Colombian should have taken himself out of action to avoid further complications.

(Image: SNS)

The Ibrox boss detailed Cortes’ condition after he missed the trip to Poland. An ‘unlucky’ injury had been confirmed by a scan.

“Yeah, of course it's a hard blow for him, for the team, because he was coming back and he's going to become an important player for the future of the club,” Clement said. “He has a lot of quality, he showed that last season, he was hungry to come back, he was on his way back, he was not at his best yet, but he showed already promising things again."

Cortes was pictured back in individual training after the League Cup win over St Johnstone at Hampden. He has since re-joined the squad at Auchenhowie.

Ridvan Yilmaz

The sight of the left-back being stretchered off against Dynamo Kyiv added to Clement's woes on the night. Yilmaz pulled up after attempting a shot in the second half and received treatment before being replaced. Clement confirmed ahead of the St Johnstone fixture that Yilmaz would be absent for the foreseeable future.

"Yeah, Ridvan will be out," Clement said. "I don't like to say too much in detail things, but it will be around between four and six weeks. Something like that."

Danilo

The Brazilian felt pain in his knee following a training ground incident after the Old Firm defeat. A few days later, he returned to Holland for treatment and a rehabilitation programme.

It is understood that the issue is not a serious concern and he was able to do gym work later in the week. Danilo was left out of the squad for the Europa League campaign and will see more action domestically as Clement gets set to alternate his options. It is expected Danilo will return to action in October.

Rabbi Matondo

The Rangers Review revealed the winger will be absent for up to two months after sustaining a hamstring injury in the defeat at Parkhead. Matondo pulled up in the first half and was replaced by Ross McCausland after an attempt to play on failed.

Matondo was withdrawn from the Wales squad for their Nations League fixtures and will miss a crucial run of domestic outings for Rangers. Clement has also left him out of his group for the Europa League.