Copy linkFacebookXPinterestEmailShare this article0Join the conversationFollow usAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleNewsletterFour Four TwoGet the FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Become a Member in Seconds Unlock instant access to exclusive member features.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.You are now subscribedYour newsletter sign-up was successfulWant to add more newsletters?Five times a weekFourFourTwo DailyFantastic football content straight to your inbox! From the latest transfer news, quizzes, videos, features and interviews with the biggest names in the game, plus lots more.Signup +Once a week...And its LIVE!Sign up to our FREE live football newsletter, tracking all of the biggest games available to watch on the device of your choice. Never miss a kick-off!Signup +Join the clubGet full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in.Subscribe to our newsletterRussell Martin's final act as Rangers manager saw him leave the Falkirk Stadium with a police escort to keep him away from furious fans of the Ibrox club.The former Scotland defender was sacked shortly after that 1-1 draw, with that abiding image providing a snapshot of how toxic the atmosphere became around Martin towards the end of his 123-day spell in charge.Having signed a three-year contract last summer, the ex-Southampton boss was relieved of his duties on October 5 after winning just five of his 17 games in charge, with Rangers eighth in the Scottish Premiership.Article continues below You may like Martin O'Neill discusses Celtic squad's 'disintegrated confidence' after Wilfried Nancy experiment Every time a manager got sacked, it was always, Scholesy, are you going to do the Oldham job? I thought, F**king hell, go on then, Ill give it a crack Paul Scholes recalls his spell in charge of his boyhood club Ex-Newcastle United manager reopens old wounds with shocking Mike Ashley admission 'I don't regret anything' Russell Martin opens up on Rangers spellMartin's first major setback was a 9-1 aggregate defeat by Belgian side Club Brugge in the Champions League play-offs last August, and he ultimately never recovered.Fan protests and chants continued to grow amid a poor run of form and tensions reached boiling point after that draw at Falkirk, when supporters tried to stop Rangers' team bus leaving the ground and Martin had to be escorted away by police in a separate car.Five months on, the 40-year-old has now opened up on his Ibrox spell during an appearance on BBC Radio 5 Live's The Monday Night Club.Martin said: I dont regret anything, Ive learnt a lot and Ill definitely be better for it. I love Glasgow as a city, I loved living there, the people face-to-face were fantastic and I think it was character-building.Get the FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over."It was really difficult for the people around me - family, friends, when my kids came up they couldnt come to the game because of the level of abuse I was receiving at that point, and it was quite early on."But when you look back at it, you learn from everything, so there is stuff you would do differently, stuff you would insist on doing the same and maybe being even stronger with."There was so much change. I walked into the club at a time with new owners who had literally been there two weeks when I came in, a new director of football, chief executive, new head of performance, new head coach, 14 new players, and I tried to stress that it would take some time, but thats my fault because I was in a place where historically and traditionally you dont have time, so I dont feel bitter about it at all." What to read next Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior on becoming a social media meme Manchester United needed a manager who understood the clubs culture. David Moyes arrived with a small-club mentality and made poor decisions Nani on why Red Devils struggled after Sir Alex Fergusons retirement 'Walter was an incredibly successful manager and an even better bloke, and I found it a really interesting way of looking at it' Frank Lampard reveals managerial wisdom from Rangers legend Walter Smith It was a summer of upheaval on and off the pitch at Ibrox, as a consortium led by Andrew Cavanagh and 49ers Enterprises completed their takeover of the club in May, before Martin was appointed the following month.He added: Id have loved the time to build something and I felt that was what the club needed, but the owners decided differently."Frustration is the biggest thing, there were so many small things we could have done a little bit better. I should have been a bit more rigid with formation and certain principles, and I sort of tried to bend and flex to fit the newness of the group."We had so many young players we bought into the club. Its not excuses, we should have done a better job than we did and we should have won more games, but we felt like we were going to get somewhere with it."Theres loads of frustration for me as a manager, a coach, and a leader, but ultimately as a manager its always your fault, so its my fault I didnt do well enough and you learn for it, and Ill be better for it for sure.Martin led Southampton to promotion from the Championship in May 2024 via the play-offs, but his possession-based style of football proved less successful in the Premier League and he was sacked seven months later with Saints bottom of the table.The former Swansea City and MK Dons boss revealed he has been approached for managers' jobs in the past few months, but said: Ive turned a few things down since I left Rangers, partly because footballs so quick to move on, so your stock can go from so high to so low so quickly."Im pretty much a 'yes' or a 'no' straight away for a club owner or director of football because of the way I want the team to play."Some will go, 'It doesnt fit us, we dont want that', and some you need to check if they really want this, because it might not be instant - but if you give us a little bit of time the evidence suggests well do OK."TOPICSRussell MartinScottish PremiershipJames RobertsFreelance writerJames Roberts is a freelance sports journalist working for FourFourTwo. He has spent the past three years as a sports sub-editor for various national newspapers and started his career at the Oxford Mail, where he covered Oxford United home and away.
