Steven Gerrard is perfect for Rangers – he took a dig at Russell Martin without even realising it

Steven Gerrard is being heavily backed to return to Ibrox and his subtle dig at Russell Martin’s management style will come as music to Rangers fans’ ears.

Rangers currently find themselves eighth in the Scottish Premiership, having only won one of their first seven league matches.

It didn’t take long until Martin was under pressure and, over the past few weeks, the scrutiny on the 39-year-old hit boiling point.

The club are now at a crossroads and need to make the right managerial appointment to get their season back on track.

While several candidates are being considered for the job, Gerrard is currently the frontrunner and is set to hold talks with the club this week.

Rangers fans have already had a taste of what to expect from Gerrard and his comments from when he initially took the job in 2018 prove that he’s the polar opposite of Martin.

While Martin has always been conscious about his philosophy and brand of football, that isn’t what Gerrard is all about.

“What I won’t be, is I won’t be one of these managers that goes on about a philosophy and talks and talks,” Gerrard told Rangers media in 2018.

“I think it’s important to walk the walk.

“The supporters will see very, very clearly from the off what we’re trying to get into the team and what we’re trying to get out of the players.

“There’ll be a time and a place to talk about a philosophy, but the most important thing is that we win football matches.

“That’s what you have to do when you’re part of the football club.”

Steven Gerrard taking the piss out of Russell Martin 7 years ahead of time pic.twitter.com/V5sKIWZWr0

— Jordi (@JordiNotGeordie) October 7, 2025

In contrast, Martin spoke about his desire to dominate the ball during his opening interview with the club, although he struggled to translate his philosophy into results.

For Gerrard, his impact at the club was felt straight away. After finishing second in the league during his first two seasons, he won the league in 2020-21, going unbeaten and accumulating 102 points.

If he does land the job, he’ll be walking into a fractured dressing room that’s low on confidence, but the 45-year-old will no doubt back himself to turn things around.

He’s been out of work since leaving Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq in January, but now seems ready to throw his hat back into the ring.

“I’m enjoying family time and doing a lot of things that I haven’t been able to do,” Gerrard recently told Rio Ferdinand.

“Going to Grand Prix, doing exhibition games with ex-team-mates and superstars, that type of stuff has been great.

“But there’s a part of me that still feels that there’s a bit of unfinished business in terms of wanting to go in and face another couple of exciting challenges.

“But I want a certain type of challenge. If in an ideal world they come available, I’ll jump at them.

“If they don’t, I won’t go back in. I want to be at a team that’s going to compete to win because I think that suits me better.

“I think certain jobs and certain clubs would suit my style and the way I like to go about it.

“But I’ve also got time now where I’m not in a rush, where I know the right people that are out there to make me a stronger and a better coach. They are the people I need to find.

“Because if I get the right match with those people around me, I know, and I’ve proved, I can be successful as a manager.

“And that’s what I’m working on in the background now.”

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