Priske and Clement leave clash in Prague with more questions than answers

A fairly unremarkable goalless draw (aside from a recent rivalry sparked in controversy) was actually a rather intriguing affair in Prague as both Sparta and Rangers had much to play for in the Europa League's very competitive Group C.

What’s more, the match saw two of Europe’s more promising managers face off.

Sparta, the reigning Czech champions, won the league title last season under the watchful eye of Dane Brian Priske (46) after nine long years without the crown.

Rangers, on the other hand, haven’t lifted the Scottish title since 2021 and will be desperate to change that this season although they have a fair bit of ground to make up on Celtic already.

They came into the fixture having just appointed a new manager following the sacking of Michael Beale earlier this month.

Belgian Philippe Clement (49), formerly manager of Monaco and Club Brugge before that, was the man handed the reigns in the blue half of Glasgow.

Clement impressed during his time in charge of Club Brugge (where he also played for many years), winning consecutive league titles. That got him a gig at Monaco in January 2022. In his first campaign, he took them to third in Ligue 1 but last season didn’t go to plan and they missed out on Europe entirely. He was dismissed and now finds himself in another massive role.

Priske has already won over his fans with a championship in his first season - the first foreigner to do so in the Czech Republic (excluding two Slovaks, both born in what was Czechoslovakia). Coming out before kick-off, he received adoring applause.

Like Clement, Priske also managed in the Belgian league (at Royal Antwerp) and has a Danish title under his belt from his time with Midtjylland.

For Priske’s Sparta, this season will be about denying cross-town rivals Slavia another title and going on a run in Europe.

For both these clubs, the expectation is to be the champion every season. The Europa League provides a different challenge, though. Can they mix with clubs outside of the leagues they have each historically dominated and make a splash beyond their own borders?

Clement’s first assignment was a league match over the weekend - a comprehensive 4-0 win over Hibernian with two goals from Abdallah Sima (formerly of Slavia, coincidentally). 

But what would Clement's first considerable challenge hold?

The match came and went without much to write home about in all honesty - read a full report here.

A tense and hard-fought draw leaves both clubs on four points in the group, trailing Betis by two, who won on the road against Aris on Thursday.

Sparta had the chances to win it but Rangers held on thanks in large part to goalkeeper Jack Butland, especially in the first half. And the visitors looked more threatening in the second 45.

After the match, Priske remarked: “For sure it was disappointing. We wanted all three points. If there was a winner today, it should have been us.

“We dropped a level in the second half... I don’t know if it was due to the substitutions. The boys who came in tried to do their absolute best.

“But we struggled to be compact under the pressure”

Asked about the possibility of still progressing out of a tough group, Priske emphatically answered, “Of course (we can).

“I think we are still up there,” he continued.

"We still go to Glasgow and I cannot see why we can’t win there. So, nine points to play for, nine difficult points to take.

"We can definitely compete against all three of them. We can take points against all three of them.”

Clement said it was a point well deserved for his side who were the “better team” in the second half, according to him.

He said: “In the first half, they were the better team. 

“Our reaction in the second half was good. We showed, at half time, some images of what we were not doing well - on the ball, without the ball. And the reaction in the second half was really good.

“In these circumstances, having only two days to change the system of play with no full-back available, I think it’s a really important point and the team showed a lot of resilience to fight until the very end."

Touching on the group dynamics, Clement added: “Winning points away from home is really important in Europe.

“Of course, we are hungry, we want to win. We were close to getting that so that feeling stays. But I think in the circumstance, this is a really important point.”

Honours even and not a whole lot learnt but these are certainly two teams to keep an eye on if either progresses in the Europa League or even in the Conference League should one finish third.

What's more, both Priske and Clement are managers who, despite being at very different points in their journeys at their current employers, could well be lifting bigger and better trophies down the line if not this one.

The sides meet again on November 9th - another chance for both these promising managers to stake a claim in Europe.