UEFA Europa League 2025/26: Can gentle opening fixtures ease strain on Rangers and manager Russell Martin?

Martin signed a three-year deal in the summer to take over from Philippe Clements and it has been anything but smooth sailing so far.

The Gers have yet to register a Scottish Premiership win, their four consecutive draws and a defeat leaving them 11th in the table and making it their worst start to a league campaign in 47 years.

Martin managed to guide Rangers to victory over Hibernian in the Premier Sports Cup over the weekend, but regardless of their domestic form, an arena in which they have enjoyed some of their biggest highs of late has been in Europe.

Rangers have won just one domestic title in the last 14 seasons but have reached a Europa League quarter-final and final in that time.

So, can Martin mastermind a turnaround?

When Martin, who enjoyed a brief spell as a player for Rangers on loan in 2017, arrived after a difficult end to his tenure at Saints, he promised aggressive, attacking football, but that is yet to come to fruition.

There were concerns his possession-based philosophy wouldn’t cut it in Scotland when he was appointed and the early signs have done little to silence the doubters.

The lack of goals is one thing, but of more concern is what is happening at the other end of the pitch.

Out of possession, players have looked lost at times, and it all came to a head against Club Brugge.

Another early goal was conceded before the Scottish side were reduced to 10 men. The floodgates were opened and Brugge pounced, taking a 5-0 lead at the break and scoring again shortly after the restart to hit Rangers for six on a harrowing night.

Martin survived to lead Rangers into the first Old Firm of the season. It was a derby that will not live long in the memory, but Rangers at least showed more solidity in the 0-0 draw.

The lack of creativity was apparent against their great rivals, though. Lots of passes but little cutting edge, it has all been a little predictable and slow so far. That could be behind the worrying trend of conceding first in six of their last nine games.

Martin will be desperate to put that right – his job likely depends on it – and show he has what it takes to bring glory back to the club. The visit of Hearts after the international break was supposed to provide a reset, but a disastrous 2-0 defeat only deepened the crisis.

Who knows what would have happened had the cup quarter-final against Hibs gone the same way, but amid fan protests, Rangers managed to advance to take some positivity into the first Europa League game of the season in front of the Ibrox faithful.

Whatever happens, there is no denying Martin has been backed by the club. Plenty of new faces arrived in the summer, including 21-year-old forward Youssef Chermiti on deadline day from Everton for an undisclosed fee.

Chermiti was the second striker to be bought in a matter of a few days following the signing of Bojan Miovski, with Cyriel Dessers and Hamza Igamane leaving the club.

Will they provide the spark up front that is required, though?

Chermiti put pen to paper on a four-year deal after reportedly not featuring in David Moyes’ plans. He came through the ranks at Sporting, where he made 22 appearances for the senior team and scored three goals.

In 24 appearances for The Toffees, he failed to find the net, so he has a point to prove in Glasgow.

Among the other new recruits, Djeidi Gassama has enjoyed a strong start to life at Rangers after signing from Sheffield Wednesday, while there is hope 17-year-old Mikey Moore, on loan from Spurs, will flourish.

It is, as Martin has pointed out on several occasions, early days, so a degree of patience will be required, but it is already wearing thin.

Momentum typically plays a huge role in any European campaign and perhaps even more so in the new league phase format.

An early win or two can really set the tone and ease pressure for the later fixtures, and that will probably be key for Rangers looking at the opponents they are set to tussle with.

From Pot 1, they face the prospect of taking on a rejuvenated Roma and a high-flying Porto side, although the timing of those clashes is favourable.

Not until Matchday 4 do they welcome Roma to Glasgow, while the trip to Portugal to face Porto is their last game of the league phase.

In between those clashes come Braga at home, Ferencvaros away and Ludogorets back at home.

But before that, they begin their Europa League journey by taking on Genk, Sturm Graz and Brann. It is a gentle start that offers Rangers the platform to get some early points on the board in their bid to make it to the knockout stages.

Perhaps even more importantly, it is a chance to instill some much-needed confidence in the squad that could filter through the entire club.

In contrast, should that trio of fixtures yield little in the way of points, Rangers and Martin will find themselves under even greater pressure. Such are the margins.

• September 25: Genk (h)
• October 2: Sturm Graz (A)
• October 23: Fire (a)
• November 6: Roma (H)
• November 27: Ferencvaros (a)
• December 11: Braga (H)
• January 22: Ludogorets (h)
• January 29: Porto (a)