Russell Martin's drams with Rangers legend as he recalls fan abuse moment and need for resilience

Yet Martin has made a career out of proving doubters wrong, eking out every last drop from himself to be a success. At the age of 39, he has been handed the keys to the castle. The former Rangers and Scotland centre-half penned a three-year deal on Thursday night to spearhead a new era at Ibrox after the club was sold to American investors.

Martin’s six-month loan spell at Rangers from Norwich was a largely underwhelming affair. He lost two Old Firm matches heavily as Celtic lauded it over the arch rivals. The man himself admits he was not at his best. Nevertheless, the club had an impact on him.

“I said to Disco [Davie Lavery, club masseur] at the time, I want to manage this club one day,” Martin said as his ambition came true. “He texted me last night saying, you've made it happen. Well done, I'm proud of you. And I said, I'm really grateful for that.

“So, I think it was always, when I came here, I wanted to stay here as a player for as long as I could. And then when that became apparent that it wasn't going to happen, the aim was then to try and get back here as a coach or as a manager. And thankfully I've been able to do that.”

Martin has his sceptics. Not all Rangers fans are pleased he has been appointed. Who else is better qualified and within range is an intriguing debate. Former title winner Steven Gerrard and the wholly untried yet glamourous Davide Ancelotti appeared to be his closest competitors for the role. Martin likes his teams to play with a clear identity of being brave and aggressive in and out of possession. He has had success at Southampton, guiding them to the Premier League, and has a point to prove after being sacked six months ago.

Iconic Rangers men

A penny for the thoughts of Rangers’ legendary kitman Jimmy Bell, looking down on a man whose shorts he once pressed. Bell passed away three years ago yet remains an iconic figure around Ibrox. He left a lasting impression on Martin, who regaled a lovely story about him.

“It would always just remind you about what the club meant,” Martin said of interactions with characters such as Bell and Lavery. “What brought it success, we'd talk about it a lot - Jimmy especially.

“For the first week or two I didn't have a clue. Jimmy hardly said a word to me apart from to tell me off about kit and stuff. By the end, we got on really well. I was really sad when he passed.

“My last day at the training ground, he brought in a bottle of whisky and I was in the jacuzzi and I was the last one there. He brought in two plastic cups, and I don't drink, but I felt obligated because it was Jimmy, he's a Rangers legend.

“I was already a bit dehydrated, I'd been in the jacuzzi too long. He poured me a couple and, as I said, I don't drink, I felt obligated. He told me so many stories and it was honestly a beautiful moment. I'm really glad I shared that with him.

“I was really grateful at the time because I felt that meant that he'd accepted me. It hadn't gone well on the pitch, but he understood that I'd tried my very best. I’d really tried with a few of the young lads as well and spent a lot of extra time with them to try and help them on their journeys.

“Ross (McCrorie) and Batesy (David Bates) at the time and Greg Docherty, guys I'm still in touch with. He was regaling me of stories for a long time, and I had to leave in a taxi. It probably explains my performance the day after!”

Perhaps so. Rangers drew 5-5 with Hibs on the final day of that season ...

Prior experience of Rangers

Now it matters a whole lot more for Martin. Rangers are streets behind Celtic on and off the pitch and success is a demand at Ibrox. The former centre-half at least has a bit of experience living in the goldfish bowl of Glasgow football. A film circulated in 2018 of him getting abuse while out in the city. He is steeled for what is to come, though. A man who has spoken candidly in the past about his tough upbringing and an abusive father, Martin does not shirk a challenge.

“The size of this club, I think, people don't understand until you come up here,” continued Martin. “I thought I'd had an understanding and then being in it, it's even bigger than what you think and how much it means to people.

“Also, I played for Scotland for six or seven years prior to that and still had complete anonymity walking around Glasgow really if I was up here for a game. Then, literally the day after I came here, I was walking through the West End and had none. I was like, ‘okay, that's changed. Now I need to go out with a hat on and my glasses if I want to go and read in the West End’.

“But even that incident, I didn't think much of it because you get it. In football you have to accept it is part and parcel that sometimes you might get a bit of stick. I never felt under threat or anything like that. I think I only got put out because someone filmed it. And actually, on the whole, the positive stuff — the conversations you have with people, even fans of opposition teams — far outweighs the negative stuff.

“In the same way, a few negative messages I've received recently is far outweighed by the positive ones. You have to take the rough with the smooth in football and how much it means to people. The intensity of it all is not like anywhere else I've ever experienced, but I think that's part of the attraction.

“I love working under pressure. I grew up in chaos and being able to deal with that, I think I have a high capacity for stress and I'm looking forward to being here.”

Martin sees himself as a mentally strong character. His leadership skills as both a captain and a coach have been extolled by some of his former charges. He knows he will have to tap into that in his latest role.

Resilience so important for Martin

“I think for players, for managers, coaches, leaders, I think it's everything,” he said of mental strength. “I think resilience dictates how far you go. I don't think it's talent.

“As a player you have a level of talent to get to where you get to, then it's about resilience to making a mistake, how you respond to that, how you respond to maybe a crowd not being overly positive towards you, how you respond to a setback, a big defeat or whatever.

“Also even making a decision in the game, you’re making it on your terms and not because you're forced into anything. I think that's so important. I think it's what separates the best players from the good ones. There's not a huge gap.

“And then as a coach I think it's everything because the minute I feel under stress or it affects my energy, it’s going to affect everyone. I'm really conscious of that. I think that's why I was desperate to be a manager early on because I had so much frustration from my own career.

“When I sat there as a player and I wanted things done in a certain way, or how I wanted to be treated in a certain way, to be able to go and play on the pitch with clarity. You play under different managers, you look better for some managers than others because maybe the style suits you or whatever, or you felt a bit more trust or belief or clarity.

“So, I think the role of the leader in that environment and all of us coaching staffs can be huge for these players. The team have to be resilient and robust in many ways, not just in terms of dealing with the outside stuff, but on the pitch in actions. In moments, we might have some tough moments on the pitch. They have to really be strong and resilient in that.”

At the forefront of a major reconstruction job, it is a good thing Martin is prepared to don the hard hat for what could lie ahead.