Rangers rocked by backlash as John Souttar urges teammates to step up and ease Russell Martin’s pressure

Rangers manager Russell Martin is under significant pressure following a 3-1 loss to Club Brugge in the Champions League play-offs, leaving his team with a major challenge in the return fixture. Defender John Souttar has come forward to defend his boss, insisting that the responsibility for the defeat lies with the entire squad, not just the manager.

The atmosphere at Ibrox was tense as some fans departed before halftime, dismayed by Brugge’s rapid three-goal surge in the opening 20 minutes. The team faced a chorus of boos at the final whistle, highlighting the dissatisfaction among supporters after a disappointing start to the season, with Rangers also failing to win their first two league matches against Motherwell and Dundee.

Souttar urged for collective accountability, stating, “Look, I think it’s unfair for him to take the flak. I think we all have to take it. It’s not just the manager, I think we are all due it. Everyone at this club who wants to play here has to understand that when things are not going well and demands are not met – then you are going to take flak. You need to accept that.”

Reflecting on the disastrous first half, Souttar acknowledged, “In the first half on Tuesday we actually shot ourselves in the foot with how we started. When you give away the goals we did, that makes any game difficult. Especially a game like that when there is so much at stake and we are playing against a team of that quality. In the second half we were a bit better and made them a bit more uncomfortable. But the damage was done before that.”

Looking ahead to the second leg in Belgium, Souttar stressed the need for a disciplined defensive performance and pointed to Rangers’ history of strong results away in Europe as a source of hope. “We brought pressure on ourselves by conceding those two goals in the manner we did. That makes everything harder so we have to go over there and be on the front foot. We can’t afford to give goals away the way we did. We need to implement our game plan on them, instead of giving them the start we did. There is still the belief because we have had big results away from home in Europe in the last few years. ‘But there is no point saying that – we need to go and show it.”

Souttar admitted that Rangers made things far too easy for Brugge, a rarity at Ibrox where visiting teams typically struggle. He emphasized that the team’s lackluster first-half display handed the Belgians both confidence and comfort, which made their task much simpler.

Despite the dire situation, Souttar is holding on to the improved attitude shown in the second half, suggesting it offers a glimmer of hope for the away leg. “Of course we have to cling on to that. We have to cling on to something. The way we played in the second half, we were on the front foot but obviously it’s easier when you have nothing to lose. We wanted to start like that. But when you lose two goals like that it naturally derails everything. We were a bit better in the second half and when we go over there next week we’ve got to play like that.”

He further highlighted the importance of making Ibrox an intimidating venue for opponents, something Rangers failed to do against Brugge. “On Tuesday night, we gave them confidence and that made life so difficult. We’ve had good European nights here and Ibrox has been a place where opposition teams don’t feel comfortable. But we gave Brugge that comfort. So when you give teams that comfort, it’s a lot easier for them to play out from the back, take risks and be more relaxed. We gifted them that luxury. It’s important when we have European games here that we get the crowd on our side and make the opposition uncomfortable. That’s our biggest asset and we just didn’t do that.”

Rangers now face a daunting task in Belgium, needing not only to overturn a two-goal deficit but also to restore faith in their supporters and prove their resilience on the European stage.