Rangers announce that head coach Russell Martin has been relieved of his duties after just 123 days in charge at Ibrox, following Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Falkirk in the Scottish Premiership.
Rangers have announced that head coach Russell Martin has been relieved of his duties after just 123 days in charge at Ibrox.
The 39-year-old’s dismissal comes just hours after the Gers were held to a disappointing 1-1 draw by newly-promoted Falkirk in the Scottish Premiership.
After the match, a group of angry Rangers supporters blocked the team bus outside the Falkirk Stadium and Martin was escorted away in a separate car by police.
Martin has admitted that there were “no excuses” and he leaves the 55-time Scottish champions after steering them to only one win in their opening seven top-flight games, matching the club’s worst-ever start at this stage of a campaign.
The appointment of Martin was met with concerns from the beginning and Martin himself admitted that he was facing a “huge” challenge to win over the club’s supporters and prove his doubters wrong.
However, Martin won just five of his 17 matches across all competitions (29.4%) and Rangers have acknowledged that “results have not met the club’s expectations.”
Martin’s results as Rangers boss “have not met the club’s expectations”A statement released on Sunday night read: “Rangers Football Club confirms that it has parted company with Head Coach, Russell Martin.
“While all transition periods require some time, results have not met the club’s expectations.
“Assistant Head Coach, Matt Gill, and First-Team Coach, Mike Williamson, will also be departing.
“Russell and his staff have worked exceptionally hard throughout their time at the club. We thank them for their efforts and wish them well for the future.
“Further updates from the club will follow in due course.”
The former Southampton boss leaves Rangers sitting in eighth place in the Premiership table, 11 points behind leaders Hearts and nine points adrift of Old Firm rivals Celtic.
June 5: Rangers announce the appointment of Russell Martin on a three-year deal. He was chosen as the permanent successor to Philippe Clement, who was sacked in February, with club legend Barry Ferguson leading the team for the final few months of the 2024-25 season.
July 22-30: Martin secured a 2-0 home victory over Panathinaikos in his first competitive game as Rangers boss in the second round of Champions League qualifying, before the Gers played out a 1-1 draw in Greece to seal a 3-1 aggregate win.
August 2: Martin was denied his first Rangers win in the Scottish Premiership after Motherwell scored an 87th-minute equaliser to rescue a 1-1 draw at Fir Park on the opening weekend of the new campaign. After the match, Martin heavily criticised his players’ mentality and egos, claiming that they were “lucky to get a point”.
August 5: Rangers delivered “amazing energy” and “real moments of quality”, according to Martin, as they claimed a 3-0 first-leg win at home against Viktoria Plzen in the third round of Champions League qualifying. Summer signing Djeidi Gassama scored twice on his full home debut.
August 9: For the first time since 1989, Rangers were left without a win in their opening two league fixtures after drawing 1-1 with Dundee at Ibrox. Captain James Tavernier came to the rescue for the 10-man Gers by scoring a 92nd-minute equaliser from the penalty spot.
August 12: Rangers progressed from the third qualifying round of the Champions League via a 4-2 aggregate scoreline despite suffering a 2-1 second-leg defeat to Viktoria Plzen in the Czech Republic, conceding what proved to be the winner for the hosts in the 83rd minute.
August 16: A much-changed Rangers side avoided an upset against third-tier outfit Alloa Athletic, as they reached the quarter-final courtesy of a 4-2 home victory, but once again, Martin’s team looked defensively vulnerable.
August 19: Rangers conceded three goals during a disastrous 20 minutes and were unable to mount a fightback as they suffered an alarming 3-1 first-leg defeat to Club Brugge in the Champions League playoff round in front of a disgruntled Ibrox crowd. Martin stated after the match that “the game plan went out the window” after they conceded ‘out of anxiety and made decisions based on desperation’.
August 24: Rangers came from a goal behind to draw 1-1 at St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership, but Martin’s floundering side could not avoid recording their worst league start in 36 years. Striker Hamza Igamane – now at Lille – told Martin he was ‘injured’ and refused to come on as a substitute after a week in which the Gers rejected a bid for his services.
August 27: Martin’s hapless 10-man Rangers, who had Max Aarons sent off in the eighth minute, crashed out of the Champions League playoffs in humiliating fashion after suffering a record-equalling 6-0 defeat in Belgium at the hands of a clinical Club Brugge outfit, who inflicted a remarkable 9-1 aggregate defeat on the Gers. By this point, a large number of Gers supporters had made their mind up on Martin.
August 30: To the surprise of many, a spirited Rangers side picked up a point from a goalless stalemate with Old Firm rivals Celtic at Ibrox. However, four draws out of four at the start of the Premiership season left the Gers six points behind the Hoops and eight points adrift of early leaders Hearts.
September 13: Martin became the first Rangers manager to fail to win any of his opening five league games in 47 years after watching his side lose 2-0 at home to Premiership leaders Hearts, with Lawrence Shankland scoring either side of half time to hand the Jam Tarts their first victory at Ibrox in 18 visits since August 2014.
September 20: Rangers ended a six-game winless run and punched their ticket to the Scottish League Cup semi-finals after beating Hibernian by a 2-0 scoreline, but the victory was overshadowed by fan protests at Ibrox against both Martin and CEO Patrick Stewart.
September 25: Former Celtic forward Hyeon-Gyu Oh returned to Glasgow to haunt 10-man Rangers as his second-half strike was enough for Genk to seal a 1-0 win from an eventful contest at Ibrox in their opening League Phase fixture in the Europa League, piling more pressure on under-fire Martin.
September 28: At the sixth time of asking, Rangers secured all three points in the Premiership courtesy of a 2-1 victory at Livingston. Martin’s men were agonisingly close to enduring their longest winless run in history until Aarons netted a dramatic 94th-minute winner. This result proved to be Martin’s fifth and final victory in charge of the Gers.
October 2: Not for the first time, Rangers were masters of their own downfall as they fell to a 2-1 defeat away against Sturm Graz on matchday two of the Europa League. The Gers conceded a goal for the 23rd away match in a row across all competitions, beating an unwanted club record that had stood since the Victorian era (22 games between 1895 and 1897). In addition, social media footage captured fans confronting the club’s chiefs about their troubles, underscoring the depth of the crisis.
October 5: Martin was relieved of his duties just hours after he was escorted away by police to avoid fan protests following a 1-1 draw at Falkirk in the Premiership. Martin insisted that he could still turn Rangers’ fortunes around, but the “noise” around his future intensified to such a great level that the club’s board opted to sever ties with the man who was labelled “the standout candidate” upon his appointment” four months ago.
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