Russell Martin future at Rangers ‘already depressingly bleak’ after unwanted 35-year first
Russell Martin has got off to a poor start domestically as Rangers boss.
Following Rangers’ draw on the opening day against Motherwell, Martin’s assessment was that his side were lucky to get a point, and rightly so.
Not an ideal start, but time to bounce back.
Rangers did indeed rebound emphatically with a 3-0 win in Europe against Viktoria Plzen, but after following it up with a draw against Dundee on Saturday, Martin has set an unwanted first in 35 years after just two league games in charge.
Martin first manager since Graeme Souness to be winless in the first two league games
Despite Gers dropping points again, Djeidi Gassama continued his positive start to the season with another promising performance, which saw them have to rely on a stoppage-time penalty from James Tavernier to rescue a point.
The 1-1 draw with Dundee, however, means Martin is the first Rangers manager since Souness to be without a win after his first two games of a Scottish Premiership season.
While Martin’s success so far in the Champions League qualifying has been impressive, the league is Rangers’ bread and butter, with Martin’s squad highly unlikely to be able to compete with the elite clubs in Europe at this moment in time.
A core group of the Gers squad has been consistently criticised over recent seasons, but Martin, too, must now share some of the blame following this latest disappointing result.
Alarming similarities in both Rangers draws
In both of Rangers’ games so far in the league under Martin, there has been a concerning pattern that has made them depressingly bleak to watch.
The Light Blues had an overwhelming amount of the ball but only managed to create one big chance in each of the games.
While adapting to Martin’s style may have its growing pains, Gers have simply not been good enough in either match.
If it does not click on the pitch soon for Martin’s side, he may be forced to adapt his principles to suit his current group of players more.
Although it is early in the season, Rangers cannot afford to fall too far behind Celtic, as they look to prevent their Old Firm rivals from winning their fifth league title in a row.
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