Philippe Clement has spoken ahead of the visit of Aberdeen. Here is what he had to say.

Are you happy to be named Manager of the Month?

For me it is a collective award, those things. It is good for the staff because of all the good job that they did, for the players also because they worked really hard to get good results. I see it in that way, it is not an individual prize but more a collective prize. It means that the team is in the right way and that is the most important thing.

Is it now a case of continuing that into this busy month?

Of course. We are happy about that. We want to stay as long as possible in the three competitions. We know we are the only thing doing that in the next couple of months but I think it is a positive thing. A lot of challenges, good games, give chances to the squad to prove themselves in every sense against a lot of opponents, give chances to players to play also. That is a positive thing.

How do you assess the rivalry and challenge of Aberdeen?

I have seen it is living a lot alive in the other side. In Aberdeen, against Rangers, apparently it is really something special. I know that, I have experienced it now with two games already and I saw the third game also at the beginning of the season. It is going to be a good battle. For me, it is one of the three or four best teams in the league in quality of squad. I am a bit surprised the position they have in the league but there are a few reasons for that in my mind. I don’t want to speak about that, I want to speak about Rangers. It is a team with a lot of quality and we know we need to be at our best to take the three points and that is every time we go.

Have you come across Neil Warnock in the game?

I know him, of course. He has a long history in football but I haven’t been so much in the island here with other teams in the past so we never met. But he is somebody with a lot of experience. I don’t think it will change a lot, I don’t think that Aberdeen will play suddenly in a totally different style. I think the style that they were playing is more the style that he wants to see. I don’t see big changes. Whatever happens we are ready for that. That is the good thing, the last couple of months we met a lot of different playing styles and the team knows better and better how to react towards a certain style.

You have a chance to go top of the league, does that enter your thinking at all?

Totally not. No. Zero. Totally not. We have the same mindset and I see it in the players also. Nobody in the building is talking about that. We are just busy with our own game, having a respect for our opponents, knowing their qualities, trying to use their weaknesses and taking the points by playing good football and entertaining our fans and keeping this really strong team mentality that is in the dressing room now. Whoever is playing they are doing the job and the rest are really hungry to come off the bench and finish off the job. We will continue with that and that is the only thing we are busy with.

Was that mindset always within the squad or have you had to stress that to them?

I don’t know if it was there and I don’t care to be honest. I know what is the way to win trophies, I have been there enough times as a player, as a manager. [I know] what a season is and there is only one way and that is to focus on yourself and to do it game by game. People who start to plan too much from before or look too much ahead, they fail because they lose their focus. Of course I need to plan things, that is my job and I need to plan long term also. For example, I can tell you guys already that Ryan Jack will not be in the selection tomorrow because he comes out of injury. He also has a history of injuries and it is only a short recovery time between the two games. I will not take risks with him now and we will build him with our medical staff and performance staff in the next weeks and months to make him more robust so that he can come out of this cycle of injuries that he had. That is planning long term. Towards the results, it is short term, it is every game, every time confirming and going for the three points.

How is Leon Balogun?

Leon, I don’t know yet. He is this afternoon with the surgeon to speak about the injury and what is necessary with the specialist, to see if he needs surgery or not. Then we will know better. He will also not be selected for tomorrow.

Any other changes from the squad at the weekend?

Those two guys out. The four other players, they are not ready yet to come in. Ben Davies is close, he trained already a bit with the team but is not ready yet to be in the selection. Kemar Roofe is also getting better and better but is not training with the group yet. The two others are more long term.

What will the surgery be for Balogun?

He is with the specialist today so he will decide what is the surgery. I am not a doctor or a specialist.

If you go top of the league, is it a sign of the progress you are making?

Whatever happens tomorrow, the progress is there. It doesn’t depend on one result. Everyone sees the progress this team has made in the last couple of months. It is not about one result or one week, it is about continuing what the team is doing and everybody clearly sees from outside already the progress, from inside we see it much more because we see it every day in every sense. We need to integrate the new players. You see with Fabio also it takes time but it becomes better and better and that is normal. For offensive players it is more difficult than defensive players. To get the connection, to understand who is playing in what way, who is running where, what to do to move together. We are going to do that work with Oscar and Dio also in the next weeks and months and that will make us stronger again and with the rest of the team to make them more fit, to get more automatism in the team and to grow. The progression is there whatever happens tomorrow.

Are you surprised with how quickly things have improved?

I never had an expectation in an amount of time towards that because it is not in my hands. I am the one here to guide things, to show them the road. How fast people respond to that, how fast people understand everything, how fast people do the job, that we can never know with a squad or a new player. But I know if you work in a good way in the long term it will come, that has been clear in the past. You never know how fast it goes. I told you guys and I told the team also until now for me, and I am not so long the manager, until now this is the team who made the steps in the fastest way.

How has Oscar reacted to his first start?

Good. He was excited, he loved the stadium, the fans, the buzz around the field. But he is somebody with a certain cool. You see when you play your first minutes at Ibrox some players can be really nervous and it is normal, it is also not a bad thing. He stays cool, he does the right things. He is also somebody who comes out of Colombia, sometimes it can be hot there also in the stands. I had this experience with some Colombian players and all of them have this winning mentality, this no fear thing. That is what I like about that culture.

Have you made your mind up on the players who are out of contract?

Those are five different stories. That is something with the club and me to decide on. I can say my thoughts on sporting ideas around things and then it is between the club and the players about the financial stuff. At the end, I am not the guy who is paying the bills luckily. My wife is happy about that!

Will those decisions come sooner or later?

That depends from situation to situation and how they perform and what the plan is towards next season. There are a lot of things around that. I am focussed mostly on the team and on performing and the players need to do that also.