Tom English hits out at ’embarrassing’ Rangers and Russell Martin coverage live from Ibrox
Rangers face Genk in their first game of the Europa League group stage at Ibrox on Thursday.
Russell Martin has opted for Youssef Chermiti over Bojan Miovski in the starting lineup against the Belgian outfit on 25 September, arguably looking to get sacked.
The 39-year-old head coach undoubtedly needs to string a few victories together to reduce the noise around his future in G51 after a poor start to the season.
Andrew Cavenagh is backing Martin at Ibrox, despite heavy criticism being levied against the Scottish manager, but some of the talk has possibly gone a bit overboard.
Russell Martin defended for Rangers Loch Lomond trip
It was “ridiculous” to see Martin being ridiculed for taking the Gers to Loch Lomond after losing to Hearts in the William Hill Premiership, Tom English says.
The Scottish manager was evidently trying to raise morale after Derek McInnes’ team were triumphant at Ibrox, and it certainly worked.
With a win over Hibernian in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-final, it looks like the former Southampton boss was right to take his team on a little trip.
Speaking on BBC Sportsound on 25 September, English said: “The coverage around when he took them to Loch Lomond was embarrassing, to be honest. People were saying, ‘he shouldn’t be doing that, what’s he doing?’ It’s clear what he was trying to do.”
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Genk face tough prospect at Ibrox as Russell Martin to take advantage
Martin’s team are seen as the underdog against Genk, which isn’t surprising considering the Gers’ recent European form.
However, the Belgian outfit aren’t in the best of forms either, having won just two of their first eight league games this season.
Thorsten Fink’s team are winless in their last three matches, and the Glaswegian outfit are certainly in high spirits after making it to the semi-finals of the Premier Sports Cup.
| Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses |
| 13 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
Martin needs to justify Cavenagh’s faith in him at Rangers by going on a tremendous run, and that can start against Genk at Ibrox.
Barring the inclusion of Chermiti, fans will undoubtedly be pleased with the starting lineup against the Belgian outfit, and it’s now up to the players to perform and show that they believe in what the Scottish manager is trying to do in G51.
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