Russell Martin, the manager of Rangers FC, voiced criticism regarding the mentality and egos of some players following a disappointing draw against Motherwell in their Scottish Premiership opener on Saturday. Feeling that team morale was an issue, earlier in the week Martin made the decision to drop experienced players James Tavernier, Nicolas Raskin, Danilo and Kieran Dowell from the starting eleven. This news comes just in time for the important leg against Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League third qualifier.
In the starting match against Viktoria Plzen which resulted in impressive 3-0 win for Rangers, Martin’s choice turned out to be the right one. Djeidi Gassama ignited the scoring just 14 minutes into the match—the fourth goal in as many European appearances. Cyriel Dessers made it 3-0 by scoring from the spot just before halftime. The impressive work of the players that did make themselves available only served to bolster Martin’s confidence in going radical and brash with lineup decisions.
The gentlemen that entered the team were incredible. We’re going to need everyone. After the game, Martin praised the efforts of Lyall Cameron, Jefte and Dessers. As it turns out, all three players started in a crucial away match against Viktoria Plzen. Beyond that, John Souttar did well leading the team as captain, and Oliver Antman impressed during his national team debut.
Martin had long stressed to his team the need for transparency when it came to picking the squad. He recently added that Tavernier accepted the reasoning behind his dropping from the starting eleven. “I’m just always honest with them, why they’re coming out, why I pick someone else, and they just don’t have to agree at all, but hopefully they respect a bit of honesty,” he explained.
Even with the positions changed, both Tavernier and Raskin made appearances later in the game off the bench. Martin wanted to clarify that their absence from the starting lineup wasn’t due to punishment for underperforming. Rather, it was a calculated play to boost the team’s morale and psyche.
Following that victory over Viktoria Plzen, Martin had been pleased by the response from his players. He realized that a few members of the squad need to change their approach and swagger. If they are serious about making the team and city successful together, doing so is absolutely necessary.
It’s easy to forget that Martin was hired and qualified to make a short-term impact. After a 5-0 thumping of PSV, Rangers comfortably took a 7-3 aggregate score to advance to this season’s group stage. This win makes the team feel great about what they’re achieving and supercharges their entire team. It further reinforces to each individual player the key role they each play in making that squad successful.
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