Glasgow Rangers have begun their new era under Philippe Clement in positive fashion, winning three and drawing one of their four matches since he arrived in Scotland.
Although there is still a long way to go, the honeymoon period has been enjoyable as the Gers have returned to their attacking best, scoring 11 goals in just three Premiership matches, having netted just 13 in the proceeding eight games under both Michael Beale and interim boss Steven Davis.
It is still early enough in the season for Clement to salvage something and with a League Cup semi-final clash this weekend against Hearts, he could be lifting some silverware sooner rather than later.
There is no doubt the club were set back by Beale, as he struggled to get the best out of his summer signings, while a few arrivals were questionable additions to the squad.
Cyriel Dessers and Sam Lammers have both failed to live up to the money the 43-year-old spent on them, while failing to improve certain areas of the team was baffling and lacked proper long-term planning.
Bringing in only one centre-back during the summer – 35-year-old Leon Balogun – was an unmitigated disaster, especially considering how injury-prone John Souttar is, while Ben Davies did not exactly seem up to the standard expected at Rangers during his debut season.
He also had a howler by releasing a few players following the end of their contracts, with Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent, Scott Arfield, and Filip Helander now all moving on to pastures new.
Indeed, the Swedish defender has now returned to form at Danish club Odense BK and many will wonder why he was released prematurely, especially as it now looks as though he is injury-free.
How much Rangers signed Filip Helander for
Following Steven Gerrard’s debut season, which saw the Gers return to the group stages of a European competition for the first time since the 2010/11 campaign, the former Liverpool captain was aiming to bolster his squad.
Kent arrived on a permanent deal from the Anfield side, while Joe Aribo was also another positive arrival, but it was a move for the Swede which looked like it would strengthen one of their weakest areas – centre-back.
The Gers had conceded 27 league goals during 2018/19, seven more than Celtic and improving this area would allow the club to challenge their Old Firm rivals for domestic superiority.
Helander reportedly cost £3.5m from Italian side Bologna in 2019 and that signalled a statement from intent by Gerrard that he meant business.
Filip Helander’s statistics at Rangers
The Swede made just ten appearances in his first term at the club due to suffering a foot injury against Celtic in the League Cup final in December 2019, yet he returned for the start of the 2020/21 season and formed a solid partnership alongside Connor Goldson.
The Light Blues won their first league title in a decade and conceded just 13 Premiership goals all season, a stunning record that may not be broken for some time yet.
Helander ranked second across the squad for tackles per game (1.7), while also ranking third for clearances per game (2.2) and winning a staggering seven duels per game – a success rate of 70% – proving how important he was to their cause.
68
413
31
150
23
105
This would be as good as it got for the former Bologna defender, as over the next two seasons, he featured just 11 times having missed an incredible 99 games through injury, meaning he was absent for the Scottish Cup and Europa League finals at the end of the 2021/22 season.
He left for nothing yet is now shining for his current club and a fit and firing Helander would be a much better option for Clement than Davies.
Filip Helander would be better than Ben Davies
Hailed by Sweden boss Janne Andersson back in November 2020 as being “a reliable defender” Helander has seen his return to full fitness and solid performances rewarded with a national team call up for the first time since 2022 during the Euro 2024 qualification matches last month.
He played against Moldova and Belgium, yet he has shone in the Danish top flight and has played just one match fewer than Davies this season (seven vs eight).
The 30-year-old titan however, has a greater pass success rate than the English defender (88% vs 86%) while he has also registered more interceptions (1.2 vs 0.8), tackles (1.8 vs 1.5) and clearances (4.3 vs 2.8) per game when compared to the current Gers centre-back.
Helander appears to also be stronger on the ball than Davies, losing possession just 8.7 times per league match compared with 12.8 times for the former Preston North End defender, and he also wins more ground duels per game (2.2 vs 2) and his physicality could be a big advantage for Clement in this current Gers team to deal with physical opposition threats.
It has been a welcome return to competitive action for Helander following a couple of seasons of injury woes during his time with the Light Blues.
Whilst it was perhaps the right time to let Helander leave Ibrox in May, he has certainly gone on to prove everyone wrong and make a stunning comeback over the previous few months, which makes the decision to move him on look like a nightmare.
His talents were never in doubt, based on his prior statistics with the club, and he was arguably one of the finest defenders in the side when fit, but the supporters just did not see enough of him during his four years at Ibrox.
Davies has yet to settle in at Rangers and the statistics show that Helander is currently enjoying a more productive season than the former Liverpool centre-back.
This could soon change under Clement as it appears the Belgian is keen for everyone to have a clean slate and enjoy a fresh start under his leadership.
It's pleasing to see Helander shine away from Rangers, but there could be a section of the supporters who wish they could have him back in the starting XI, based on his form this year, as it looks as though it was a howler from Beale to release a Davies upgrade on a free.