Martin does exactly as he promised with scathing Rangers comments
Russell Martin’s first Scottish Premiership match as Rangers manager ended in an uninspiring 1-1 draw with Motherwell.
The jury is still out on Martin as he continues to make wholesale changes at the Light Blues and make his side his own.
Gers have managed to progress to the next round of Champions League qualifiers, with the Light Blues boss passing his first test at the helm.
However, the draw with Motherwell prompted a fiery outburst, which drew on some comments he made after he was sacked from Southampton.
Martin adopts rougher approach with Sky Sports interview
Martin was furious with the Bears’ performance on Saturday (2 August) as they were largely dominated and were lucky to come away with a point.
After being sacked by Southampton, he appeared on Sky Sports and discussed his plans as a manager and any regrets he had with the Saints.
- Martin was sacked by Southampton after winning just one of his 16 matches last season
- His final game with the Saints was a 5-0 defeat to Tottenham on 15 December 2024
Following a 3-1 defeat to Bournemouth last season, he thanked his players for “running and fighting” in the second half despite being dead and buried.
The Gers boss said that he regretted doing so and said that the effort should have been given anyway.
He added that going into his next job, he hoped to bring a bit more ruthlessness with him. Therefore, Martin has done exactly what he promised he would.
Martin also added that he believed he should’ve changed his tactical approach in the top flight of English football and went more direct.
The Rangers boss’ rant was something that hadn’t been expected of him and showed that he is adopting a new approach at Ibrox.
During his tenure at Southampton, he would often place the blame on himself, but following the draw with Motherwell, he said: “Today wasn’t a tactical problem, it was a mentality problem.”
Martin’s comments will encourage supporters
Martin seems to have got rid of his soft underbelly.
Rangers were guilty of having a soft underbelly last season as they placed trust in players who were past their best in Glasgow.
The new Gers boss seems to have eradicated that issue by bringing in eight new players, with current players set to be sold.
Rangers fans will ultimately only care about success in both the short and long term, and Martin’s new approach may help in that regard.
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