Rangers transfers: Russell Martin sets out clear stance on duo and addresses Champions League challenge

Martin arrived as head coach on Thursday and while the spotlight has been placed on what players could come in at Rangers, especially with £20 million investment from the recent takeover and a new sporting director in Kevin Thelwell, there is also some uncertainty as to who in the current squad will remain.

Midfield duo Diomande and Raskin have both emerged as transfer targets for other clubs over the past few weeks. Everton are said to be keeping tabs on Diomande as they go through their own rebuild, while Raskin had a stand-out 2024/25 season for Rangers and having broken into the Belgium team, his performances have caught the eye of clubs on the continent.

Martin is fully aware of both individuals and stressed the need to keep his best players - and believes that the whole club is singing from the same hymn sheet.

“We have to try and keep our best players,” said Martin. “And I think we're all really aligned with that. So unless things come in that really help the club to build and move forward, I don't think it's a necessity to do that at all. That's my understanding of it. And we've all been really clear on it. So we'll just have to wait and see. But I'm looking forward to working with those guys [Diomande and Raskin].”

Holding on to his star men will give Martin the best chance on guiding Rangers through the Champions League qualifiers. This season, the Ibrox club will enter at the second qualifying round - a stage earlier than last season - and will need to navigate three ties to reach the main phase.

Martin excited by Rangers’ Euro challenge

The first of those games comes in mid-July and while Martin has next to no experience of European football, he is relishing the challenge of managing against continental opposition.

“I feel excited about the challenge of it, yeah,” Martin continued. “I think it's different in terms of obviously having a bit less awareness of the opposition, which is going to take a bit more working. But it's going to be about us. Whether we're playing in Europe, in the league, in the cup, whatever it is, it's going to be about us and trying to be the best we can be.

“But to experience that, the thought of having European nights here, it's hugely exciting and appealing. So we have to try and make that happen.”

No matter the opposition, Martin wants his teams to be an embodiment of his own footballing values.

“I think a team is a reflection of the leader, ultimately,” he added. “When you look at Sir Alex's team, they were relentless. They found a way to win all the time. In a different way to, like, Tony Pulis’ team looked like him. It was hard-working, it was gritty, it was resilient.

“And Tony's actually someone I've seen at Southampton training ground a lot, because he lives down here and his grandson plays for the academy. So I enjoyed some real conversations with him. We're very different in terms of how our teams look, but they're reflective of who we are as people, probably.

“And I think I just want my team to be relentless and hard-working and play with courage and almost like I would have wanted to play when I was a player. I think that's ultimately it. To go on the pitch knowing I can have some level of backing from the manager to play in a certain way that maximises what I would have had.”