Next Rangers manager: Russell Martin would be 'positive thing' for Ibrox club as evolution cited

Reports emerged on Tuesday lunchtime that Rangers are poised to appoint Martin as their next manager. The ex-Scotland internationalist - who had a brief spell on loan in Govan - has always been one of chief candidates since Philippe Clement was sacked back in February and with the search nearing its conclusion following last week's takeover and new sporting director Kevin Thelwell taking office on Monday, it appears an appointment is imminent.

Thelwell and new chairman Andrew Cavenagh have been tasked with landing their next boss and Martin, who has been out of the dugout since being sacked by Southampton last December, is understood to have been in competition with former Real Madrid assistant boss Davide Ancelotti for the role.

Should the appointment come to fruition, one of his former teammates in Gunn believes "intellectual" Martin has the tools to succeed at Rangers. The pair played together at Norwich in 2017 and the centre-half's leadership skills stood out for the goalkeeper.

“There were a few other players in that dressing room – Steven Naismith was there as well – and you can tell on the pitch when you’re playing with players,” said Gunn. “They kind of start coaching whilst they’re still playing, if you like, sort of organising on the pitch.

“Russell was one of them, but it wasn’t just on the pitch, it was off the pitch as well, where he had close relationships with everyone. Even though he wasn’t a regular playing in the team, he was always on hand and always upbeat and a good person to go to.

‘He helped me massively’

“Obviously, I only worked with him as a player at Norwich but he’s a very intellectual guy. I went in there as a young goalkeeper and he helped me massively, even though he wasn’t in the team every week and playing regularly. He was the captain of the club and he had good relationships with everyone in the dressing room.

“Obviously, watching what he’s done at Southampton, I thought he’d done incredibly well there and probably was unfortunate to lose his job there because it’s always difficult for teams coming up from the Championship to even compete with some of the Premier League teams,” said the goalkeeper.

“With the way he wants to play and his philosophy, I really hope whatever he goes on to do in his career is successful. Obviously he had a spell at Rangers, so he kind of knows the club a little bit. I think it would be a really good thing for Rangers.

"As a manager, he showed what he can do, not only with Southampton but with Swansea as well. He took a team that wasn't expected to do much quite far into the Championship as well. I think it will be a positive thing for Rangers.

Gunn played against Martin's Southampton team two years ago en route to the Saints' promotion from the Championship and he recalled: "They were a tough team. I think we had a couple of good games against them. One was 4-3, one was 0-0, so quite contrasting.

"We've seen the evolution of their team throughout the season. I think when we first played them, they were quite open. Then, when we played them again, they were a little bit pragmatic.

"I think that shows a coach that can adapt and change the way his team plays. I think, watching his teams over the few years that he was there, I thought he did that. Even though some people probably said that he was reluctant to change a lot, I thought he'd did that quite well, especially in the Championship anyway."