Russell Martin already walks back on Rangers promise after Zander Hutton transfer
Rangers have confirmed Zander Hutton has joined Hamilton Accies on a season-long loan.
The 19-year-old made his non-competitive debut against Middlesbrough on 26 July in a pre-season friendly, but it looks like he wasn’t in the Gers’ plans for this season.
Hutton, 19, was part of the Light Blues’ Champions League squad in the current campaign before Club Brugge knocked them out at the Jan Breydel Stadium, with the game ending 9-1 on aggregate.
Russell Martin finds himself in a fix at Ibrox, with many fans wanting to see him gone, and the Scottish manager certainly hasn’t lived up to his word in G51.
Rangers appointed Russell Martin to develop youngsters at Ibrox
Martin has already admitted that one of the reasons the Gers appointed him was to give youngsters more opportunities.
It appears the Scottish manager has now walked back from that promise following Hutton’s exit, despite the apparent lack of quality options at full-back after Max Aarons’ struggles.
Findlay Curtis is another academy graduate who the 39-year-old hasn’t shown faith in at Ibrox despite some influential displays from the young forward.
Speaking in July, Martin said: “One of the reasons we were brought here is to try and win, but also to develop some players for this club and pull up some players from the academy and give them opportunities.
“I don’t want to put too much pressure on them, but they’ve been great. How much involvement they have over the season, I don’t know. It will depend on what the squad looks like when the transfer window shuts, for sure.”
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Findlay Curtis deserves more opportunities at Ibrox
Curtis was the hero at Ibrox against Panathinaikos, but has since seen his minutes dwindle for some reason.
The 19-year-old hasn’t started in a single game for the Gers in the William Hill Premiership, despite consistently showcasing his quality at the Light Blues this season.
Against Alloa Athletic, the Scottish youngster came on in the final minutes and scored a goal in the 4-2 win and was the Glaswegian outfit’s saviour against St Mirren in the 1-1 draw at the SMiSA Stadium.
Martin has lost the backing of the Rangers fans after just 11 games in charge, and some of the Scottish manager’s decisions have certainly been questionable.
| Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses |
| 11 | 3 | 5 | 3 |
The former Southampton boss has stuck with Aarons in the starting lineup despite the Bournemouth loanee’s poor performances.
Supporters would arguably prefer to see someone like Hutton get opportunities at Ibrox instead of a player who isn’t guaranteed to stay in G51 next season.
Bailey Rice and Clinton Nsiala are others who haven’t had a look in the team, and it feels like Martin doesn’t have faith in most of the young players at the Glaswegian outfit.
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