Look On Doom Side – Ex-Scotland Star Warns Russell Martin Over Possible Cup Exit | OneFootball

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Former Scotland international Alan Rough has indicated that defeat for Rangers against Hibernian this weekend would cut deeper as it would put the Gers out of the Scottish League Cup.

New Rangers owners, the 49ers, appointed Martin as their manager in the summer but less than four months after his appointment, he has not won over those fans who doubted him and has lost others prepared to give him a chance.

Rangers have made a horrendous start to the season with no wins from their first five league games and they currently sit tenth in the league table with growing frustration among the fans.

Martin has also fallen out with Nicolas Raskin, something which baffled Billy Dodds, who has labelled the Belgian a ‘good lad’.

Now Rangers are due to face Hibernian in the Scottish League Cup this weekend, which we have previewed here.

Rough is of the view that the only way for Martin to ease down the pressure on him is to go on a winning run that will quell the angry supporters and he issued a warning to the former Southampton boss that an early Scottish League Cup exit at the weekend, where supporters want a good run, will spell doom.

The ex-top-flight star also thinks that the Rangers board need to come out and explain to the fans why they are planning to back Martin if they are in reality behind their chosen candidate.

“I think the writing’s nearly on the wall because he knows winning games takes the pressure away”, Rough said on PLZ Soccer (5:20).

“The only way this is going to go away is if they start winning games and going on some kind of wee run and it will quell a wee bit.

“But it has been every game now; it has been pressure, pressure, pressure and it is going to be that at the weekend.

“The Hibs game is going to be massive and again, if you look on the doom side, if they lose that game, that is a cup game; that is one that the players and the supporters all want a good run in, so that again could be another bad tick against them.

“We keep hearing that the board are backing him, but until the board actually come out and say, ‘We are backing him,’ it is okay for him to say they are backing him, but I think they need to come out and tell the supporters why they are backing him, but winning games is the only thing that saves him.”

Former Rangers star Charlie Adam also warned the 49ers that they should not confuse Rangers with Leeds United