Glasgow Rangers manager Russell Martin made a big decision that immediately left some Ibrox supporters disgruntled when he took charge.
Martin sacked as Rangers manager
The Gers could only draw 1-1 away to Falkirk in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday afternoon, proving to be the final nail in the coffin for Martin, who was sacked hours later, with the club releasing a statement.
“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 brutal reality is that Martin endured a disastrous reign, struggling to impress in both the league and in Europe, and he called out his players early in the season, suggesting that all was not well straight away. Having clung on to his job as Rangers manager for a while, it felt like a matter of time until he was relieved of his duties.
It’s now a case of the Gers looking to nail Martin’s successor at Ibrox, with the likes of Sean Dyche and Steven Gerrard among the possible options to come in, and it is vital that the right choice is made.
Martin rarely made life easy for himself at Rangers, in terms of leaving certain players out and being stubborn with his tactics, and a new claim further highlights some of his poor decision-making.
Martin “disregarded” historic Rangers tradition
Speaking to Ibrox News, journalist Jonny McFarlane claimed that Martin’s decision not to wear a traditional suit as Rangers manager left some fans irritated – something he was warned about at the beginning.
“Martin came in and looked at that history and said, ‘That’s not for me, I sweat, so I can’t wear a suit.’ To me, that just speaks to a certain lack of understanding.
“And I have it on good authority that he was warned prior to the start of the season that he should be wearing a suit because the fans won’t like it if you don’t. It’s a really important thing. And he didn’t listen, and he disregarded that aspect of the club’s history that goes back 100 years.”
While Martin was ultimately welcome to wear what he wants – fans are less likely to care if Rangers are winning – he didn’t do himself any favours by going against tradition. The Englishman was told about the attire that is expected of him, so to go against the grain is only risking making his job harder from the off.
He is surely going to go down as one of Rangers’ most disappointing managers in history, overseeing so many poor games and already seeing many points dropped in the league.
After yet more dropped points at Falkirk, it felt impossible to see Martin turning things around and bringing success to Ibrox, so the right decision has been made.
