What is on Martin's initial to-do list at Rangers?

Cyriel Dessers and Nico Raskin were two of Rangers' strongest performers in 2024-25

To say that Russell Martin has an extensive to-do list is a massive understatement.

The new Rangers head coach has what will likely be a critical seven-week period before his new side kicks a competitive ball in anger.

So what are his key priorities as his tenure at Ibrox gets under way?

Identify signing targets

As most people are aware, this is no longer solely the job of a manager.

But the departure of Nils Koppen as technical director means three of the key figures involved in recruitment – Martin, sporting director Kevin Thelwell and new technical director Dan Purdy – are just in the door.

There is a handover period during which Koppen will presumably be outlining the targets he had identified, but the incoming trio will clearly have their own ideas as to how the squad should be revamped.

Rangers showed in flashes last season that they have players capable, on their day, of being good enough to reach the standards expected at the club.

Wins over Celtic, Fenerbahce, Nice and Union St Gilloise are testament to that, but too often they dropped below those levels, with concerns raised about the squad's overall mentality as much as the ability.

Most observers agree Rangers need to add as many as half-a-dozen starters, which is easier said than done when you are trying to operate a transfer policy of buying young talent with a view to selling for a higher value.

That is the challenge facing Martin and his new bosses - turn an under-performing squad into winners while trying to implement a trading model that doesn't break the bank.

Trim the deadwood

This goes hand-in-hand with the identification of new signings, but is arguably more difficult.

Technically this probably falls under the remit of Purdy and Thelwell, but you would imagine Martin will be part of the discussion before any departures are sanctioned.

In applying for the job in the first place, he would have assessed the squad and who he planned to work with going forward.

You look at the players allowed to go out on loan last season – Ben Davies, Kieran Dowell and Rabbi Matondo being the highest-profile examples – and doubt whether they have a future at Ibrox.

The question is, can Rangers recoup a decent portion of the money spent on bringing them in?

Martin would likely examine the rest of the squad and try to determine who he feels can play a role in his side and who he might he be willing to dispense with.

There are certainly a number of players who have work to do in terms of proving they deserve to be part of this new dawn. But time is not on Rangers' side and so some quick decisions will have to be made.

The other factor in all this is players he might want to keep but who may leave if a good offer comes in, in keeping with the new player trading model.

Nico Raskin is probably the obvious example here. Without question, he can be a key player for Martin, but if a club comes calling with a lucrative bid, there will be a temptation to accept it.

Sure, that money will be reinvested in the squad, but it weakens the manager's hand in the short term.

Convince the doubters

Martin's appointment has won the approval of some, but others remain to be persuaded that he is the right man to challenge Celtic.

There was always an element of risk whoever was given the job, and the only way to win over those doubters is to win matches.

It would be a massive fillip for Martin if he kick-started his reign by qualifying for the Champions League.

That said, previous Ibrox boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst paid heavily for doing so as his side incurred damaging defeats in the competition, hastening his departure.

Nevertheless, one of the key reasons for the new owners getting involved was to be part of the biggest competitions in world football and Rangers have an opportunity to put them there within weeks of taking over.

Martin would have to successfully navigate three qualifying rounds to do so but, if he could, it would be a massive feather in his cap and get the fans well onside.

But clearly the main objective is to overthrow Celtic domestically and so he has to hit the ground running in the league as well.

So those first few games could make or break the new manager. Just look back to the start of the previous couple of seasons.

Michael Beale never really recovered from losing on the opening day at Rugby Park, then heavily to PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League play-off.

And how different things might have been for Philippe Clement had Jefte not been harshly sent off against Dinamo Kyiv, which rather scuppered the Belgian's hopes of leading Rangers into the Champions League proper.

Now the mantle has been passed to Martin, who will quickly realise the demands of being manager of Rangers.