Russell Martin’s tenure at Ibrox is surely close to an end. European humiliation has been followed up by Rangers worst start to a league season since 1978.
Zero wins from the first five, a run of four draws followed by Saturday’s defeat at home to Hearts. Time is up, it is now a matter of when not if.
But where did it all go so wrong? We look at five results that sealed Russell Martin’s fate.
Rangers 1-1 Dundee
Rangers drew their opening league match away to Motherwell. Poor? Yes, but it can happen. Surely a second league match, at home, against relegation favourites Dundee, managed by Steven Pressley, would see Martin’s men get their first win and kick start the title challenge.
The club had just battered Czech side Viktoria Plzen 3-0 midweek. New signing Oliver Antman had shone. We were all ready for the floodgates to open.
But no. Rangers were pedestrian, slow, and predictable. The limited managerial ability of Pressley was still enough to outshine Martin. Vulnerable from set pieces, Dundee grabbed the opener from a free kick.
We looked uncomfortable playing a dangerously high line, this was exploited, and Nasser Djiga was dismissed for hauling down Findlay Robertson after he found himself through.
A last-minute penalty was needed to avoid that first defeat. The first major warning sign, but it would not be the last.
St Mirren 1-1 Rangers
If Dundee at Ibrox was the first red flag, Paisley was the flashing warning light that could not be ignored. St Mirren had started the season brightly under Stephen Robinson, but Rangers were still expected to impose themselves and finally put some rhythm into a faltering campaign. Instead, the pattern repeated.
Rangers were blunt, unimaginative, and hesitant in possession. St Mirren pressed aggressively, sensing fragility, and it worked. The hosts took the lead late in the first half as Rangers once again crumbled under the simplest of pressure.
Questions about Martin’s high defensive line grew louder, too easy to expose, too little protection in midfield.
A late equaliser from Findlay Curtis salvaged a point, but by then the mood among the travelling support had turned sour.
Hamza Igamane, once the darling of the Gers support, refused to come on as a substitute when asked by Martin, while we frantically chased a leveller and later a much-needed winner. An injury was claimed but Martin’s wording post-match was suspect and did little to offer belief and faith to the Moroccan’s claim.
Within days Igamane was sold on, and the manager’s authority looked shredded. The incident became emblematic of Martin’s weak man-management, unable to command respect, unable to resolve internal friction, and increasingly powerless in the dressing room.
The point did little to mask the chaos. Another drab draw, another opportunity wasted, and now a flashpoint that would linger in memory. Two games in, and Martin already looked a man fighting fires on every front.
Rangers 1-3 Club Brugge
The biggest warning sign was this game. It had been said from day one that the faults in Martin’s side would be exposed. We had defeated Panathinaikos and Plzen across the first to qualifying rounds to make the playoffs, but there had been warning signs and without Jack Butland we may have exited at an earlier stage.
They were brutally exposed here. Rangers were three down inside 20 minutes. The first goal showing the fragility of the high backline, and the lack of leadership both on the park, and on the sidelines.
Martin changed from his well-publicised style of play afterwards, we grabbed a consolation to inspire some faint hope of a comeback, but it would not last. At least we had addressed the issues and tightened up at 3-0, surely, we would keep the shape similar for the second leg and not revert to type?
From John Greig to Russell Martin: Rangers’ Worst Start in 50 Years
Rangers rocky road to redemption: A look-back on a bumpy August
Nicolas Raskin’s international display underlines why Rangers and Martin must mend rift
Club Brugge 6-0 Rangers
Wrong, things would get much, much worse. This was the day that the majority of the support finally gave up on the experiment. No fight, no pride, no plan. An embarrassment on the park and in the dugout, where once again no lessons were learnt from previous mistakes.
A goal down within five minutes, a man down and out of the UEFA Champions League within ten, and shockingly, 5-0 down by half time. It would end at six but lets be honest, it could have been double figures if the Belgians really fancied it.
Nicolas Raskin reportedly called out the issues we, as fans, can see but the highly paid boss cannot. He was axed for it and has not appeared since.
This should have been the end of Martin…
Rangers 0-2 Hearts
However, he limped on. A 0-0 stalemate against Celtic offered promise that he could learn, change the style and adapt the play to the opposition. He spent big on deadline day and recruited Canadian international defender Derek Conrnelius, and spent £8m on unproven forward Yousef Chermiti, but neither would start post international break against the Jambos.
It was back to the slow, pedestrian, shapeless mess we had witnessed prior to the Old Firm. The players have no clue what they should be doing, or where they should be. The defence is record setting levels of bad.
Yes, Martin can complain about refereeing decisions but we could have played for 90 hours instead of minutes and not won this match.
Tenth in the league, without a win, and could be rock bottom before our next match away to Livingston. It must end, it cannot be allowed to march on to Saturday’s match.
Get him out now, or be prepared for the support to voice their displeasure with their voices, their feet and most importantly their wallets.