Russell Martin to be named Rangers head coach in next 24 hours

Russell Martin has agreed terms with Rangers to become the new head coach at Ibrox.

The former Swansea City and Southampton boss is set to be confirmed as the permanent successor to Philippe Clement within the next 24 hours barring any last minute hitches.

The former Scotland international is travelling to Glasgow to finalise the deal and sign a three-year contract.

Martin emerged as the club’s number one choice after a number of candidates were considered, and is set lead the team through a summer of change and into a new era at Ibrox.

The 39-year-old, who had a brief spell as a Rangers player in 2018, returns to the club having built experience as a manager with Milton Keynes Dons, Swansea City and Southampton.

Martin’s appointment comes days after the boardroom takeover of Rangers by an American consortium led by health tycoon Andrew Cavenagh and 49ers Enterprise, the investment arm of American football side San Francisco 49ers, who also run Leeds United.

The new owners have wasted no time in starting to reshape the football department, with technical director Nils Koppen to leave the club and former Everton recruitment head Dan Purdy set to replace him.

Martin is the permanent successor to Philippe Clement, who was sacked in February after a disappointing run of results. Former Rangers captain Barry Ferguson headed up an interim coaching team that guided the team until the end of the season, while a recruitment process took place.

The club’s recently appointed sporting director Kevin Thelwell, and technical director of 49ers Enterprises Gretar Steinsson, lead the search for the new head coach and considered several candidates, with Steven Gerrard, who won the title with Rangers linked with a return and former Real Madrid coach Davide Ancelotti long considered the front-runner.

Martin has been chosen to take the team forward and will now take a major step in his own career.

The former centre-back had 15 years as a professional player, beginning at Lewes and then Wycombe Wanderers before moving to Peterborough United in 2008. A successful loan spell at Norwich turned into a permanent move and he spent eight years with the Canaries, making over 300 appearances.

Towards the end of his time at Carrow Road, Martin was loaned to Rangers for the second half of the 2017-18 season.

Though he played for the Ibrox side 17 times, scoring once, his move wasn’t a success and he admitted it was a case of “wrong place, wrong time” playing under interim boss Graeme Murty.

However, Martin did say he “loved playing for a football club of that size and that support”.

“I don’t think anything can prepare you for it,” he said at the time. “It’s huge. You’ve got an idea of how huge but it’s only when you go up there that you realise just how big it is.

“Just walking around the streets… it’s a giant of a football club with a great fanbase.”

After a brief spell at Walsall, the 29-times-capped Scotland international ended his career at MK Dons, where he took his first steps into management. Succeeding Paul Tidsdale, he introduced a possession-based style of play, which provided mixed results but caught the eye of Swansea City, who made him their new manager in 2021.

Martin delivered 15th and tenth-place finishes in the Championship before he moved to Southampton and enjoyed instant success. While earning plaudits for the side’s playing style, the team won promotion to the Premier League after defeating Leeds United in the play-off.

Southampton found life difficult in the top flight and Martin was regularly criticised for sticking with his preferred style and not adopting a more pragmatic approach against elite level teams. He was sacked in December of last year with the team at the foot of the table.

He returns to management to front a new era at Rangers, and will be expected to hit the ground running with a new-look team as the Ibrox club and the new owners look to deliver success in domestic competition and progress in Europe.