Winless Rangers can still be champions, says Martin

Russell Martin's side sit second bottom of the Scottish Premiership

Russell Martin insists confidence among his Rangers players "is the best it has been" since he became head coach - and believes they can still win the Scottish Premiership title despite their dismal start to the season.

The Ibrox side have won four of their 14 games this term, but none in their opening five league matches, and lost four of the last seven.

Martin's side are second bottom of the Premiership and suffered a 1-0 home defeat by Genk in Thursday's Europa League opener, having been humiliated by Club Brugge in Champions League qualifying.

And, while he conceded they cannot leave it "too much longer" to get the first league win, he insisted they can still claw back the nine-point deficit to leading duo Celtic and Hearts.

Martin, whose side visit Livingston on Sunday, said: "We want to be at the top of the table by the end of the season. If you leave it too much longer, you'll start running out of games.

"So we have time to build and win and claw our way back. We have to be really hungry and start to make up the points difference and it has to start on Sunday."

He told Sky Sports the players "are in a good place" despite the Genk loss, where they had Mohamed Diomande sent off four minutes before the break.

Martin also stressed many of his new players were "very young" but were gradually understanding what it meant to play for a club like Rangers.

"The togetherness, the willingness to run for each other, the willingness to take the ball with 10 men, all of that will stand us in good stead," he said.

Martin admitted a manager's "job is under threat wherever you work, all the time" but insisted he does not listen to the "outside noise", despite calls by many fans for him to be sacked.

He said much had been made about his chat with chairman Andrew Cavenagh and chief executive Patrick Stewart after the latest defeat but added: "The media love making out that every one is a big conversation about 'is he going, is he staying?'

"But, generally, we just chat about what we can improve, about the performance, about the next game. It is always the same.

"We have a good, honest conversation. It was nothing out of the ordinary."