Rangers

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

Image source, SNS

Russell Martin says the only way he can win over the Rangers fanbase is by consistently winning and insists he is unaffected by the "noise".

Martin's side were roundly booed during Tuesday's 3-1 home defeat by Club Brugge in the first leg of their Champions League play-off and their only victory in three domestic games this season came in the League Cup against Alloa.

Rangers have failed to win five of their opening eight matches and supporters have criticised the style of play Martin is attempting to implement.

Still, he says he must "lean into" the intense nature of the role.

"After playing here for a bit, I understand how big it is and how important it is and how things get heightened quickly," Martin said. "It's something you have to lean in to.

"My career was built on proving people wrong - I'm not driven by that, I'm driven about being the best we can be and by improving players.

"The noise is something I can't control. The only way you can control it in football is by winning matches and there will still be people unhappy I've got long hair, a centre parting and can't wear a shirt and tie because I'm too sweaty. I wear it to the games out of respect, but I can't during the game.

"You're never going to please everyone even if we win loads of trophies, which is the plan."

Amid rising fan unrest, Martin says both he and the board have not shifted from the plan put in place when he was first appointed.

"I've had nothing but support from Andrew Cavenagh, Paraag Marathe, Gretar Steinsson, Kevin Thelwell and Patrick Stewart. They understand to build something might take a bit of time," Martin added.

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Rangers midfielder Jose Cifuentes has joined MLS side Toronto FC on a season-long loan, with the Canadian side holding an option to buy him permanently.

Cifuentes signed for a reported £1.2m in 2023 from another MLS club - LAFC - but struggled to make an impact in Glasgow.

He made just 20 appearances across all competitions, failing to score a single goal.

The 26-year-old spent the second half of the 2023-24 season on loan in Brazil with Cruzeiro and was then loaned to Aris Thessaloniki last season.

Rangers head coach Russell Martin was asked about Cifuentes on Friday, in addition to Ben Davies and Ridvan Yilmaz, who are also set to leave the club.

"Three good guys that needed to play football elsewhere," Martin said.

"They have got moves they are happy with and we are happy with, so it helps them and helps us moving forwards."

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

Image source, SNS

Rangers head coach Russell Martin has been talking to the media before his side's Premiership trip to St Mirren on Sunday.

Here are the best bits from his news conference:

• Martin says they "paid the price" for a "crazy" opening period in Tuesday's 31- defeat by Club Brugge, but has enjoyed the "fight" and "energy" his players have shown in meetings and in training since then.

• The Ibrox boss believes the second-half showing on Tuesday was evidence they can respond to adversity.

• He expects both further incomings and outgoings before the end of the transfer window and thinks the team would benefit from a bit more experience and leadership. He "can't wait for the window to shut" to end "uncertainty" over certain players' futures.

• Ridvan Yilmaz said goodbye to the players and staff today before concluding a move back to Turkey, Ben Davies is having a medical with Oxford and Jose Cifuentes has completed a loan move to Toronto. Martin says all three needed to play football and thinks the moves are beneficial for all parties.

• On the challenge St Mirren will pose, Martin says Rangers have to show they can "compete and fight" against a "powerful team".

• Martin hasn't been surprised by the strength of reaction to disappointing results - he says it is his job to "make sure people feel different in a month or two".

• "I was well aware when I took the job I wasn't the most popular appointment because I don't have a fancy name" - Martin understands he has work to win round the club's supporters, but insists he doesn't "pay attention" to what is written about him in the media.

• He says the only way to control the noise is by winning matches. Even then, he thinks there would still be people "unhappy that I've got long hair and I can't wear a shirt and tie during games because I'm too sweaty".

• He says the board have given him "nothing but support" amid the early-season troubles and insists a short-term focus will not fix the wider issues at the club.

• Cyriel Dessers will likely miss Sunday's match, with the second leg against Brugge "more achievable" for his return. Hamza Igamane is not quite ready to start against St Mirren.

Image source, Getty Images

Can Russell Martin recover from an unimpressive start as head coach and win over the Rangers fanbase?

Martin has won three of eight matches in charge and his side were booed off at both half-time and full-time on Tuesday as they were beaten 3-1 at Ibrox by Club Brugge in the first leg of their Champions League play-off.

Given the uninspiring performances and results since Martin became head coach, the former Southampton boss is already up against it at Ibrox.

"I just don't think there's much buy-in from supporters," The Herald's football writer Stephen McGowan told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"The problem is that they didn't really want him in the first place, which means you have to hit the ground running to get the supporters on side. That isn't the case - he's won three games from eight.

"That isn't great form for any Rangers manager and I think the concern is it's going to be hard to get people back on side."

McGowan says the nature of the Rangers beast means that Martin might not be afforded the necessary time to turn the club's fortunes around.

They go to Paisley on Sunday looking for a first Premiership win of the season, a fixture Rangers have struggled in recently.

"It's incredibly early days and in a normal environment, the American owners would be thinking this is a bit of an OTT reaction - we're going to keep our heads and let him do his job," McGowan said.

"The problem is, this isn't a normal environment. Glasgow is frenetic, incredibly demanding and Russell Martin is really up against it. He started with a fairly short length of rope and it's getting shorter by the week.

"If you were picking a game you absolutely wouldn't want in these circumstances - it's St Mirren away, where they have failed to win on their past two visits.

"Fascinating times, dangerous times for Russell Martin."

Rangers defender Ben Davies is on the verge of joining Oxford United on loan. (Mike Keegan on X), external

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Rangers full-back Max Aaron says it's not time for "panic stations" and the squad retain "full belief" they can still progress to the Champions League.

Russell Martin's side face a monumental task away to Club Brugge next Wednesday after a disastrous start led to a 3-1 home defeat in the first leg of the Champions League play-off.

Aarons, who joined from Bournemouth in the summer, says the feeling of frustration that has hung over the club for years now is palpable, but has urged fans to understand they are "trying to build something" under Russell Martin.

"There's a lot of frustration from before and you can feel that," said the 25-year-old.

"I understand it, but we're trying to build something here, with seven [eight] games into the season and that is frustrating but it has to come from us, we've got to give them something to grab on to, but we are trying to build something.

"I believe this team will be successful. I really do believe that. So it's not panic stations and I think we go there and we put in a real performance.

"I want to be playing Champions League football and I'm sure the boys do as well, so we'll give it everything.

"I believe we can go there and win, we have so much quality in this team. When the boys play without that pressure and we play free, I feel like we can hurt anyone.

"There's a full belief in myself, in the team. There's a full belief that we can go and win these games."

Rangers face a tricky trip to face St Mirren before the second leg, a game the club opted against postponing, and Aarons knows a performance is needed in Paisley to set the tone for the trip to Belgium.

He added: "Of course it's must win, every game for this club is a must win.

"This is a huge club, huge demands, and that's why I've chosen to come here and I want to achieve success.

"We're in August and it has to start quickly and we have to go and win at St Mirren for sure.

"But in terms of this game against Club Brugge, we can turn this around for sure. "

Image source, SNS

• St Mirren are unbeaten in three league games against Rangers (W2 D1), their longest such run since going five without defeat from August 1983 to August 1984.

• Rangers have conceded more goals in their past two league visits to St Mirren (four) than they had in their previous 10 beforehand (three).

• St Mirren are one of two sides, along with Aberdeen, yet to score in this season's Scottish Premiership, while only Dundee (nine) have mustered fewer shots than the Buddies (13) in the division so far.

• Rangers have drawn both of their league games this season; on only seven occasions have they failed to win any of their opening three matches of a league campaign, most recently in 1989-90 under Graeme Souness.

• Having drawn both of his Premiership games in charge so far, Russell Martin could become only the second Rangers manager to fail to win any of his first three league matches in charge of the club, after John Greig, who won none of his first six in 1978.

Rangers are working to get as many as nine players off their books during the remaining period of the summer transfer window. (Daily Record)

Manager Jimmy Thelin has refused to rule out a move to bring Scotland forward Kevin Nisbet back to Aberdeen. (Daily Record)

Girona look set to sign Rangers target Alex Moreno, the 32-year-old left-back, from Aston Villa. (Santi Aouna)

And centre-back Nobel Mendy has signed for Rayo Vallecano after his move to Rangers collapsed. (The Herald)

Steven Gerrard held talks with 49ers Enterprises, who also own Rangers, over the Leeds United job as well as the Liverpool legend being in the mix for the Ibrox job. (Daily Record)

Jose Cifuentes is close to sealing an exit from Rangers, with Toronto FC finalising a deal to sign the midfielder. (Tom Bogert)

Read the rest of Thursday's gossip.

Alasdair Lamont
BBC Sport Scotland Commentator

Rangers' defensive frailties came home to roost on Tuesday night as they were beaten by a scoreline that will have been a surprise to absolutely no-one who has watched them this season.

A lack of control, of care in possession, of assertiveness and responsibility have been evident from the opening game of the season against Panathinaikos.

Those failings have already cost them vital league points against Motherwell and Dundee and now look to have scuppered their hopes of reaching the Champions League.

Russell Martin wants to be judged in May but he's got to get there first and with fans already vocally expressing their displeasure over what they're watching, as many of his predecessors can testify, it is difficult to retain the backing of the board when the support has turned against you.

Goodness knows what the new owners have made of the rancour that is already emanating from the stands, but presumably they will not want to rush to judgement as the new project takes shape.

It's not so long ago, after all, that Ange Postecoglou experienced a similar start to life across the city. Dumped out of the Champions League qualifiers, losing his first league game, then the first Old Firm derby, but gradually ingratiating himself with an initially sceptical fanbase to become a hero, with a scintillating brand of football.

It is difficult to identify the brand of football Martin wants to play right now, with the players perhaps still getting to grips with what he's asking them to do.

With a difficult-looking trip to Paisley at the weekend before the second leg in Brugge and an Old Firm derby on the horizon, they need to do that quickly, or the heat is only going to intensify.

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Rangers defender John Souttar says there is still "belief" among the squad that they can still reach the Champions League despite their 3-1 hammering at home to Club Brugge.

The Belgian side were ahead inside the opening 20 minutes after lapses in defensive concentration allowed sloppy goals to be conceded at a furious Ibrox.

Russell Martin's ragged side rallied and Brazilian striker Danilo pulled a goal back four minutes after the break, but Rangers face a monumental task in the second leg in Belgium next Wednesday.

"I thought we brought the pressure on ourselves, conceding those two goals in the manner that we did, the third one as well," Souttar said.

"That brings pressure on yourself and it makes everything harder.

"We have to go over there and we have to be on the front foot, we can't afford to give away goals like we did and we have to implement our game plan on them instead of giving them the start we did on Tuesday.

"There is the belief. We have had big results in Europe away from home in the last few years so there is that belief but there is no point in saying it, we have to show it next week."

The Scotland defender admits their gameplan was rendered useless after their calamitous start, allowing Brugge to feel comfortable, but insists the side will "give everything" to turn the tie around next week.

He added: "I thought the game plan was good, but when we concede goals like we did, we are going to make anything difficult, and we did that in the first half.

"When we have had good European nights, Ibrox is a place where opposition teams don't feel comfortable and I think we gave them that comfort.

"So if you give teams that comfort, it is a lot easier for them to play out from the back and take that pass, that risk, be more relaxed, and we give them that luxury.

"And it's important when you have European games here that we get the crowd on our side, we make them uncomfortable, that is one of our biggest assets.

"We've got the goal back but we've got to go over there next week and give everything and see what happens."

Image source, Getty Images

Former Rangers striker Billy Dodds: "Max Aarons has to show improvement. There's a few that have to be better if they're going to be successful at a club like Rangers.

"The recruitment of the 10 new players is meant to make things better and I think they will improve, but it remains to be seen if they're any better than the players who were here before."

BBC Scotland's chief sport writer Tom English: "I think Martin used the word brilliantly at least three times, they were 3-0 down after 20 minutes so there's nothing really brilliant about it.

"He did say the precursor to progress is pain, I think that's true but there's only so much pain you can suffer at clubs like this before serious questions are asked of you and your philosophy.

"He can't keep going like these. These kinds of press conferences are really going to anger people if he's going to continue to do them. He needs to back his words up with results."

"This wasn't brilliant, this was 3-0 after 20 minutes and a pretty bleak night."

Former Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor: "Why does it take going behind to get the enthusiasm and start going forward. Why can't Rangers do that from the start?

"It seems at the start everybody is a bit fearful of making a mistake. Rangers need to start on the front foot and make this place a fortress."

Former Rangers striker Steven Thompson: "Rangers have shown they can hurt teams, but unless they sort the defending, this will keep happening. I don't think they have it in them to go there and get a clean sheet and that's what they need."

Former Rangers midfielder Scott Arfield: "Rangers were off it and they were punished. Brugge came here to try and dampen the crowd, and next week when we go there we need to do the same."

Rangers face competition from one of Russell Martin's old clubs Swansea City for Villarreal's Cameroon Under-23 striker Etta Eyong. (Scottish Sun)

Rangers are set to miss out on Manchester City's Callum Doyle, with the England youth defender closing in on a £8m switch to Wrexham. (The Athletic)

Barry Ferguson would have targeted Dundee's Josh Mulligan and Lawrence Shankland of Heart of Midlothian if he had been retained as Rangers manager. (Scottish Sun)

Club Brugge manager Nicky Hayen says he "knew where the spaces were" in the Rangers team before they played at Ibrox in the Champions League qualifier. (The Herald)

Real Betis defender Nobel Mendy's transfer to Rangers collapsed because of a problem during the player's medical rather than a financial issue. (AS via Scottish Sun)

Read the rest of Wednesday's gossip.

A disastrous opening 20 minutes left Rangers' hopes of Champions League qualification hanging by a thread, as a clinical Club Brugge side tormented the hosts inside a seething Ibrox.

Rangers fans, what did you make of your side's performance? Can you still qualify for the Champions League? Does Russell Martin have to change his tactics?

Give us your thoughts here.

Read the match report here.