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Russell Martin says that his criticism of the Rangers players was “not an attack on anyone”, but insists that he is not at the club to “play games”.
The Rangers were hooked Saturday after Motherwell obtained a 1-1 draw late on the opening day of the Scottish Première season.
Martin later said that some of his players had to “drop their ego” and that the club should “determine who really wants to be everything”.
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Protective facts of the Scottish Première match of Motherwell against the Rangers at Fir Park
Speaking before the third qualification round of the Tuesday Champions League at home against Viktoria Plzen, Martin did not decide with his evaluation of their performance.
“I’m always going to be honest with players and supporters,” he said. “I’m just not there to play games and be political and all that. I am in a job that requires certain things, and when we miss it, it is simply useful to hide things.
“The fundamental problem on Saturday was not knowledge, it was not an ability, it was the attitude. I was not emotional on Saturday, that was exactly what I said to the players. The answer was good.
“These are the same old things that I said from the first day, which is the desire to run, to help each other. It is difficult to play for this club; it is not for everyone, it is not easy. You must be a really resilient and strong person.
“The self-preservation tips that I have spoken of occurring throughout football. It’s really difficult when you have difficult times, you go back to try to protect yourself, but in fact, it does not help. I have empathy for players when it gets difficult, but let’s always be really horrible and difficult to play.
“We were not difficult enough to play against Saturday, so that’s what it was summed up.
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Martin said that some Rangers players needed to drop their ego ‘in a brutal assessment of their 1-1 draw against Motherwell
By questioning the players’ ego, Martin added: “It depends on how you define the ego. When I talk about it, it’s the self-service thing. And I don’t think so in the wrong direction. You need a little ego and a little before to play in this football club, suddenly.
“To succeed here, take the ball, want to show people that you are a good player, you must have it. So it’s not necessarily a bad thing.
“When I talk about it on Saturday, it’s like the gaze around us when we lose the ball and maybe throw our arms on each other and all that. And it’s like no, come on, you no longer need to do that. We will protect you. We are going to take care of you.”
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Chris Sutton reacts to Martin’s post-match interview after the 1-1 draw in Motherwell
Sky Sports’ Kris Boyd said it was “alarming” that Martin called his players so early in his mandate, while Chris Sutton said that the rangers’ boss was right to do so.
“What did I go early with?” said Martin in response. “There is no choice to be honest sometimes, and sometimes not.
“This is what I feel in life in general and in my work. And that’s how I have been for six years with the players. There have been a few times when I did it in previous clubs and that I never had to start again.
“But again, it’s the same conversation with the players. And then when they enter and they watch stuff, I think they understand why I would say it. So it’s not an attack on anyone.”
Martin continued: “We are three games, we have not been beaten in any of these games, but we have a lot to improve and work. Things to improve must be technical, tactical. Although we build and change so much, and change can often be messy, the things we need to work on cannot be a mentality.
“It must be the rest, detail, technical stuff, tactical stuff. We will work together, and we will improve and develop, but build it on the basis of a very strong mentality wherever we are going.
“It is behavior and habits.
“Martin doubles on Rangers players”
Adam Binnie of Sky Sports:
Russell Martin was not different on Monday that it was not on Saturday. Wounded, but refreshing honest.
If the Rangers head coach communicates with his players in the same way as he communicates with the media, which I am sure he does, then the team will receive the message.
Saturday’s performance was not good enough for Martin and far from being good enough for the Rangers.
Often, the post-match explosive diatribes are followed by a more measured vision of the game, citing the emotion of the occasion as an explanation of such an explosion.
But not today. Martin has doubled, and now players must prove him the opposite.
