With his job seemingly hanging by a threat, one managerial candidate is now reportedly a serious candidate to replace Russell Martin at Rangers.
Russell Martin Rangers sack update
Without a win in the Scottish Premiership in five attempts, the pressure is mounting on Martin at Ibrox. Reports have insisted that he still has the backing of the 49ers, but Martin admitted that there were a number of fans who didn’t want him at the club in the first place.
It has reached a stage where even attempts to enjoy a team bonding session at Loch Lomond have received a fair share of criticism. Simply put, Martin can currently do no right in Scotland.
“My job is to convince the players and the staff inside the building after a difficult afternoon and give them enough support and detail to improve. It is not going to be an easy journey for me to win favour. It hasn’t been from day one with a lot of people, but we’ll keep working and make sure it does.
“Professionally, it hurts a bit because nobody sees how hard you work. No-one sees the stuff you have to deal with, but it is what it is and is the job of a football manager.” (Martin after Hearts defeat)
Other reports have claimed that it will be game over if Martin fail to defeat Hibernian in the Scottish League Cup quarter-final this weekend. Defeat would make it six straight games without a win in all competitions and it would be hard to argue a case that the former Southampton manager should still be in charge.
For the 49ers, it would be back to square one if they chose to sack the manager that they had so much faith in at the start of the summer. Whether one particular name would take the job would be the big question in the face of such a decision.
Gerrard now a serious option to replace Martin
In an unexpected turn of events, it could be out with the new and in with the old at Ibrox. According to TeamTalk, Steven Gerrard is now a serious option to replace Martin now that he is free from previous contractual issues from his time at Al-Ettifaq.
The emergence of the former Rangers boss comes after the news that Jose Mourinho is set to return to Benfica, rather than remain a candidate to join the Gers. The so-called ‘Special One’ was considered an option, but Rangers’ ability to reach his wage demands have often been questioned whenever those rumours have emerged.
So, the attention has gone back towards Gerrard. The 45-year-old remains the last Rangers manager to win a Scottish Premiership title, sealing victory in 2020/21, but will have some making up to do after ditching the club for Aston Villa midway through the campaign that followed.
That said, if the 49ers are looking for someone who knows how to transform Rangers into winners, then Gerrard is arguably their man ahead of the likes of Sean Dyche and Danny Rohl.
