Inside Bennett and Clement's May Rangers transfer summit

Clement previously admitted the challenge was a bigger one than he expected and Bennett has now revealed he was left feeling the same way after a lengthy discussion with the manager.

The Ibrox chairman hadn't expected as major a rebuild to be required after significant investment in the transfer market in 2024 with £11.5m spent on permanent transfers alone - excluding all loan deals.

But the pair were unanimous in agreement that a huge scale turnover would be required to get the club back on track and implement a new short-term and long-term trading model.

"Philippe talked about it when we sat down in May to review the season," said Bennett in an interview with Rangers TV.

"He said: 'John, this is a bigger rebuild than I expected.' That's what he was referring to recently when he talked about expectation when he came in.

"It was the first thing he said to me when we sat down. I said 'Philippe, me too, not least due to the investment we'd put in the prior year but me too'.

"So that's what we've got, we need to grip it and he gets that. He talked recently about the alignment. He's all in on this and he's aligned. He and his team, and we've strengthened it recently with the appointment of Andries Ulderink, are fully aligned with this.

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"(They know it's) absolutely right that the player trading model, that people like to talk about, will remain the stuff of myth. We have to make it a reality.

"If Rangers were to continue down the path of short-term recruitment, look at the amount of changes this club has had in recent years at manager level. I've said to my board colleagues and others, while I'm chairman I want to end the years of rinse and repeat. I think you know what I'm talking about - by October there are big changes at the club. 

"It's hugely damaging at every level of the club, financially etc. That must end. We must be all all-in. Philippe's all-in, we are all aligned and we have to deliver on that very tricky challenge we have to rise to."

Bennett added: "When Philippe has been asked in the media about incomings and the transfer strategy, the recruitment strategy, Philippe has been very, very clear and he has nailed it and we endorse it.

"That is, recruiting for the long-term as well as for the short-term and he has actually gone further than that, he has actually said, if I can paraphrase him, recruiting only for the short-term has caused problems historically. I completely endorse that.

"And that's regarding the player trading model, transfers if you like. When Philippe's been asked in the media about incoming and the transfer strategy, the manager has been very clear. He's nailed it and we endorse it.

"That is recruiting for the long term as well as the short term. And he's actually gone further than that and said recruiting only for the short term has caused problems historically. I completely endorse that even to the point that lessons, brutal lessons, have been learned."