Sky Sports reporter shares Russell Martin sack update from Ibrox as ‘guarantee’ made
Russell Martin is now under intense pressure at Rangers, with many fans already wanting his dismissal after less than three months in charge.
Rangers have endured a woeful start to the season, as they are winless in the Scottish Premiership and are now out of the Champions League after a 9-1 aggregate loss to Club Brugge.
Rangers boss Martin has come under fire for his tactics, team selections and his attitude, with the manager calling out Rangers players on several occasions as well as stubbornly refusing to change his approach.
With an Old Firm clash up next, Rangers fans are simply waiting for the inevitable, and there has now been an update on Martin’s immediate future.
New Rangers owners may stick by Russell Martin for a bit longer
Rangers were overtaken by a consortium led by Andrew Cavenagh and 49ers Enterprises in the summer, promising a new era of investment and on-pitch success.
Optimism faded when Martin was appointed, and the atmosphere around the club is more toxic than ever, with Martin losing the support of the entire fanbase.
However, Sky Sports reporter Gordon Duncan has now revealed that as things stand, Martin will not be sacked yet, because of the recency of the takeover.
However, he said there is a guarantee the talks is unlikely to go away.
“I think if the fans had their way, there would be no chance Russell Martin would be the head coach in the dugout here at Ibrox when Celtic come on Sunday,” he stated on Sky Sports News outside Ibrox on Thursday morning.
“It’s just quite a unique position the club finds itself in. This is a whole new era. Remember there was an entire takeover of the club during the summer, the American investment. This was supposed to be a bright new dawn for Rangers.
“Russell Martin was their man to come and spearhead that and lead a new attractive style of play. Now it’s safe to say that bit on the pitch is not happening.
“If there wasn’t a takeover, if this was normal circumstances, I think fan power would probably well get its way, because the level of toxicity aimed at Russell Martin right now is about as bad as anyone can really remember here in Glasgow for quite a long time.
“But you do just wonder if the new ownership group are really determined to hold their nerve and try and see this out for a little bit longer.
“You’ve got the time frame as well, of course. Here we are, Thursday morning, the game is on Sunday. Would you, could you really make the change in time?
“One thing is for sure, if Sunday goes wrong against Celtic here at Ibrox, in front of a home fan base, an expectant and furious fan base, there’s a guarantee we will be back here on Monday morning, having the same conversations and then some, because Russell Martin is bang up against it after that humiliation in Bruges last night.”
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Rangers owners need to be ruthless over Russell Martin
In previous years of failure, calls for the manager to leave were also matched by calls for the board at Ibrox to resign and for the ownership to change at the very top level.
Rangers fans got their wish, with a whole new board and set of directors, but this new ownership landed on Martin as their manager.
If they were to sack Martin now and show ruthlessness, then fans may get back onside with them, and the optimism when they first joined could reappear.
However, the longer Martin is in charge, the more pressure 49ers Enterprises and the Rangers board will face, and they will come under increasing scrutiny if their plan is to continue declining under a manager out of his depth.
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