The season is now well underway, with the transfer window slamming shut on Monday night. August was always going to be a test: big European ties, tricky away days, and an Old Firm at Ibrox. Rangers needed early buy-in and steady improvement to build momentum. Instead, it has been anything but straightforward for the Light Blues.
However, now that the dust has settled and the international break is upon us, now is the time to reflect on what can only be described as a rocky start and look forward to what September will have in store for the Light Blues.
Patchy performances
Rangers started their season with two nervy yet spirited showings to progress past Panathinaikos in UCL qualifying, followed by a stalemate at Fir Park in the Premiership opener. Whilst not perfect there were slight shoots of progress in isolated moments. This was followed by the best performance of season thus far as Rangers utterly blew Viktoria Plzen away inside sixty minutes, with Djeidi Gassama's second goal of the evening demonstrating everything that Rangers COULD be.
However, this was followed up by an absolutely dismal display against Dundee at Ibrox where Russell Martin's side were lucky to snatch a point. This was also the case in their next league outing against St-Mirren in Paisley.
There are a litany of adjectives that could be used to describe Rangers domestic performances this season but slow and insipid immediately come to mind. Rangers have struggled to get the ball up the park to wingers Gassama and Antman at pace often nullifying Rangers' threat from wide areas whilst the midfield has struggled to dictate tempo, with the ball being passed along the backline and the "No.6" position all resulting in no real penetration or chance creation. Rangers have only scored three league goals this season, none from open play - one from a corner, one from a penalty and one from the second phase of play from a corner. Chances have not been coming thick and fast.
Equally out of possession, Rangers have been weak, easily bullied, ineffective in the press and caught out almost at will with direct play over the top or through the middle whilst also looking incredibly suspect defending set pieces. Only Jack Butland has stood between Rangers having four points and zero points.
In mid-August, there was a real sense brewing that this Rangers side were in for a hiding against a higher quality opponent.
That hiding inevitably came in the UCL Play-Off Round where the Bears were battered black and blue over two legs by Club Brugge, losing 3-1 at Ibrox with an inexplicable 6-0 demolition over in Belgium. Rangers exited the UCL, suffering a 9-1 defeat on aggregate, tied for Rangers heaviest European defeats both in a singular game and in a knockout tie. The tie was a horror show with Rangers' conceding cheap goals by the minute at some points. Russell Martin's insistence on playing an incredibly high line coupled with Rangers' failure to properly put pressure on the ball left Brugge with an abundance of space to easily exploit with direct play. This high line has led to red cards both at home and in Europe as Djiga and Aarons have been sent marching for committing last man fouls.
A slight glimmer of hope appeared in the spectacularly uneventful Old Firm draw with Celtic as Rangers reverted to a more compact 4231 formation and sat slightly deeper, depriving Daizen Maeda of space. However, offensive problems still persisted. If Rangers are to put in the performances that will see their wagon get back on the Road to Redemption then they will need to increase the levels of urgency, concentration and conviction in their play.
Russell on the ropes
Russell Martin has already set records in his short time as Rangers Head Coach. Unfortunately, they are not records to be proud of - statistically the worst Rangers Head Coach / Manager after ten games played and matching the club's record European defeat whilst being in charge for less than 100 days is certainly some going.
The former Scotland International was not a popular choice amongst the Rangers support when he was appointed with many fearing his Pep-lite style and perceived dogmatism that he displayed at Southampton would be a bad fit for Rangers. That apprehension has thus far been justified with dull performances and a lack of tactical flexibility failing to win over the Rangers faithful and if anything, losing supporter backing by the game
The former MK Dons, Swansea and Southampton gaffer has seemed somewhat surprised at the early rigour of Scottish Football, outlining after the draw in Paisley that "normally, you will have only played two or three games after eight weeks". This is exceptional interesting given that Rangers, the team of which he is in charge of, have been involved in European qualifiers every year since 2017. Martin has also spoken about "heaviness" leading to "anxiety" in his team's performances, in a way that would suggest that these things are temporary. I would argue that the heaviness is not a temporary phenomenon but is in fact the essence and demands of Rangers Football Club regardless of how successful you have been that heaviness will never go away. As 9IAR captain Richard Gough famously said, "at Rangers, you are only as good as your last pass". The weight of expectation at Rangers will either make or break a player or a Head Coach but regardless, it will never cease - a fundamental culture shift from the club's Martin has previously managed.
Former players and coaches who have worked with Martin have praised his outstanding man-management skills, with players said to be willing to run through brick walls for Russell Martin. That has not proved to be the case so far at Rangers, if anything the opposite has proven to be true which has further alienated Martin from players and supporters. This is evident in the cases of fan favourites Hamza Igamane and Nicolas Raskin, with the former refusing to be substituted on in the draw against St-Mirren before departing the club in a £10.4m move to Ligue 1 side Lille and the latter’s father lambasting Martin in the Belgian press, culminating in Raskin's expulsion from the squad for the first Old Firm of the season, a fixture in which Raskin has come alive in recent seasons. This has led to parts of the support believing that Martin has been attempting to push Rangers' best players out of the door.
Regardless of fan pressure, Russell Martin is here to stay for the foreseeable future. The new ownership group have consistently outlined their support for him, and they have backed that up with funds in the transfer market. If Russell Martin is to rebuild his relationship with the support, it is vital that he displays tactical nous, makes proper use of the tools at his disposal and consistently win games of football in order to stand up to the heavy demands of Ibrox.
Squad surgery suspended - for now...
Rangers desperately needed a squad refresh and that has certainly been delivered. Thirteen players arrived with eighteen players going the other way, culminating in deadline with Youssef Chermiti signing for second highest fee paid in the club's history with Derek Cornelius joining on loan from Marseilles with an option to buy. Cyriel Dessers also made his switch to Panathinaikos and Raskin committed to staying despite his on-going feud with Martin.
Rangers have added some promising players this window: Djeidi Gassama has looked like a point of difference at times this season particularly in Europe, Oliver Antman has shown what he can do when he is 1v1 against opposing LBs, Bojan Miovski is a proven goal-scorer in the Scottish Premiership. Equally, Max Aarons has struggled with the physically intensity of Scottish and European football as well as looking overwhelmed by the demands of Rangers whilst Joe Rothwell has similarly looked like an athletic mismatch for the club. On top of this there are several signings who have made mixed impressions thus far such as Thelo Aasgaard, Nasser Djiga and Emmanuel Fernandez. However, I will acknowledge that it is very early in a long old season and all of those signings have time on their side to make a success out of their Rangers careers.
Whilst there has been in excess of £30m spent, there are still some clear areas for improvement that must be addressed in January. After selling Robbie Fraser, Jefte and Ridvan this summer, Rangers' only recognised LB is teenage loanee Jayden Meghoma whom whilst impressing early on, cannot be the only option in that position for the entirety of the season. A box-to-box midfielder capable of stabalising what has proven to be an unbalanced midfield regardless of personnel may also prove fruitful at the season's halfway point.
Despite not being the finished article, this Rangers side are certainly good enough to be competing for the title on paper, especially looking across the city to our rivals who have had an interesting transfer window to say the least. Martin has repeatedly called the transfer window a distraction which has unsettled his team. Well, it’s now over for the time being and it is time for the staff and players alike to knuckle down and focus on the task at hand.
Looking ahead to September it doesn't get any easier for Rangers - a clash at Ibrox with top of the table Hearts who will be seriously fancying their own title chances in the wake of the Old Firm's averageness, a league cup showdown with a strong Hibs side, a Europa League match against Belgian side Genk and a tricky away day to Livingston.
If Rangers want to make significant headway on the Road to Redemption then both the players and Russell Martin must significantly up their levels from what they displayed in August. The excuses are over and the distractions are gone, it is now over to Rangers to demonstrate if they are up to the mark or if they are passengers riding through another false dawn.