Rangers’ return to UEFA Europa League action brought no spark, only more frustration, and a kick back down to Earth after Saturday’s brief respite giving win over Hibs.
A 1-0 defeat to Genk at Ibrox was marked by tactical chaos, huge gaps in midfield, and a lack of cutting edge in attack.
Mohammed Diomande’s reckless red card left Rangers up against it, but the failings were obvious long before then. Jack Butland saved a penalty and kept the score down, yet Russell Martin’s side were still undone by former Celtic striker Oh Hyeon-gyu.
The reception at full-time told the story: the fans have lost faith, and the Thursday night magic that once defined Ibrox has vanished under Martin.
Here are our five main takeaways from this evening's damp squib.
Martin’s Tactical Naivety Laid Bare
Rangers looked lost from the start. The shape was poor, the high line suicidal, and Genk cut through with simple long diagonals all night. There was no adjustment, no plan, and no answer from the dugout, yet again.
The space between defence and attack was glaring. Genk strolled through the middle, picking up second balls and dictating play. Rangers never got control, and once again the midfield was a liability. The lack of movement from the likes of Thelo Aasgaard is criminal, and many are hiding in plain sight.
The Lone Ranger
£10m man Yousef Chermiti battled but was isolated. Other than flashes from Gassama and a Souttar header cleared off the line, Rangers created next to nothing in open play. Forwards are being set up to fail, with the former Everton man completely isolated and alone up front with absolutely no service.
Some fans grumbled at the forward losing possession but he held the ball up well on occasion but had absolutely zero support from midfield.
Diomande’s Red Card Sums It Up
After a sloppy first half where he consistently turned into traffic and lost the ball, Diomande’s reckless studs-up lunge left Rangers down to ten. It made life harder, but the problems were clear even with eleven.
He looked like a man who wanted to be anywhere else but on that park and again, when he should be one of our key men, the Ivorian has went missing when we need him most.
Jack Butland spares further embarrassment… again
Once again, Jack Butland spared Rangers from complete humiliation at the hands of a Belgian side again. He saved Oh’s first half penalty, came out quickly to clear when the high line was exposed and pulled off some key stops, but he cannot keep covering for the structural failings in front of him every single week.
Oh Dear, Oh Scores
Ex-Celtic striker Oh missed multiple chances, emphasising why he was allowed to depart Glasgow, yet still scored the winner, celebrating wildly at Ibrox, with absolutely no response from Martin’s toothless side after the restart, he was allowed to gloat and run riot, and we had no comeback.
That he was the difference sums up Rangers’ current fortunes. Steven Gerrard and Giovanni Van Bronckhorst made Ibrox into a European cauldron so hot that the embers continued to burn under Michael Beale, Phillipe Clement and even through Barry Ferguson’s brief interim reign, but the spark has well and truly burned out now. Fans turned on Martin once again with boos ringing out at the end, the old Europa League spark long gone. Nights that once made legends now feel like distant memories.
This needs to end, and it needs to end now. The results (four wins from fourteen) aren’t even the issue now, it is the pathetic, inept performances and lack of shape. Martin’s tactics fail the eye test, surely those above can not longer pretend not to see it and take the needed action.