Rangers collapse leaves big Martin questions, Brugge take control

The Champions League dream is all-but over for Russell Martin. This 3-1 defeat to Club Brugge could, and perhaps should, have been heavier. The Europa League surely awaits now for Rangers.

Romeo Vermant put the visitors ahead inside three minutes as he capitalised on the latest Rangers defensive disaster. Goals from Jorne Spileers and Brandon Mechele had Brugge three ahead on the night.

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Danilo reduced the deficit early in the second period after Martin's side had been booed off once again. It sparked hopes of a remarkable fightback.

Djeidi Gassama saw his effort ruled out after a VAR check. And with that, the chances of Rangers salvaging this tie appeared to be over. The second leg next Wednesday evening is surely no more than a formality now.

Pressure mounts on head coach

Martin spoke pre-match about his players – and the supporters and staff here – enjoying their work and relishing the challenge of being involved at this club. This was first 45 minutes that was anything but enjoyable. It was utterly abject and embarrassing, in fact. The improvement after the break was too little too late for Rangers.

The reaction at the end of each half spoke volumes. Martin is not in danger of losing his job. He has already lost sections of this support. To get to that stage at this point is quite remarkable.

We have been here before. Ibrox has sounded and felt like this too regularly of late. Yet these emotions have previously come several months into tenures that had run their course. Talk of progress, promises of improvement, will not wash with the support right now. They need to see action.

When Rangers initially made the decision – one which they later changed, of course - to ask for their Premiership fixture with St Mirren to be postponed, the thinking was that it would give Martin and his players time to prepare for the second leg in Belgium. Martin can now rest his main men next Wednesday with both eyes on the Old Firm game a week on Sunday.

To say that one is a must win for Martin doesn’t do the severity of the situation justice. Before that, of course, he must negotiate that trip to Paisley. Right now, anything is possible for this Rangers side. A defeat that is unthinkable for Martin is entirely plausible.

Lack of quality and character

The inclusion of Danilo was perhaps not a universally popular call by Martin. It was the only one that he could have made, though. Cyriel Dessers was not physically fit to start, while Hamza Igamane was not match fit. Danilo got the nod and got his goal four minutes after the break as he showed good instincts to meet a Jayden Meghoma cross and score from six yards.

His contribution to that point had been almost zero. That was not entirely his fault given the shambolic state of those around him. Rangers had no guile and rarely looked capable of carving out a goal. A Gassama strike was wide of the target, as was a Joe Rothwell free-kick.

Martin turned to Igamane and Thelo Aasgaard at the hour mark. It came in the break of play after Gassama had another attempt from distance. Not everything the winger attempted came off, but he at least showed an eagerness to take the ball and to try and influence proceedings. Had his goal - ruled out for a foul on the keeper - been given, it would have been deserved for Gassama.

Rangers played with more purpose in spells after the interval. Once again, they were unable to sustain those periods. Martin will point to those times as positives but there is not enough evidence to suggest that they can be turned into complete performances. Or a sustained run of wins, more importantly.

Defensive disasters cost Martin

Keep it tight for the first 10 minutes, lads. Well, so much for that. Making the first mistake after three minutes was inexplicable for Rangers. Compounding it by repeating it after seven minutes was inexcusable. Two moments, two goals, stunned Ibrox.

Nasser Djiga had to take the blame for the first one. A long ball from back to front should have been dealt with but the defender stopped in his tracks and left it to Jack Butland. The keeper was stranded 30 yards from goal and saw Vermant dink a lovely finish over his head.

Butland was soon picking the ball out of his net. Christos Tzolis swung in a corner that found Spileers with more time and space than he could have wished for. The finish took a deflection off John Souttar and Rangers were 2-0 down before some had even taken their seats.

Some would have thought about leaving their seats on the 20-minute mark. The finish from Mechele was wonderfully struck but Rangers were once again masters of their own downfall.

The Belgians had chances to extend their lead before and after Danilo had scored to give Rangers faint hope. A fourth on the night would not have been unfair on the side who were more physical, more clinical and more astute.

In short, they were the better side on every measurable metric. The scoreboard perhaps did not show the gulf between the teams.

A tough introduction for Meghoma

Welcome to Glasgow, Jayden. If Meghoma didn’t know what he had signed up here, he certainly does now. This was walking straight into the eye of the storm.

The Rangers Review revealed on Saturday that the 19-year-old was Martin’s target to replace Jefte ahead of his move to Palmeiras. It was nothing against Meghoma, but the reaction was not exactly overwhelmingly positive. These fans have seen signings like this before and know all of the dangers that are associated with them.

Martin showed his faith in his former Southampton starlet by pitching him in from the start. Max Aarons was given the nod at right-back ahead of James Tavernier. His inclusion did not cost Rangers on the night and no blame can be attached to him. This will feel like a steep learning curve for the Brentford kid, though. He will certainly grow up quickly here.

A moment 35 minutes in showed a bit of Meghoma’s character. He collected the ball and looked to take a quick throw-in to get Rangers going. When Souttar didn’t show for it, the youngster showed his displeasure and bit back at his skipper for the night. Meghoma was in the right.

His willingness to get forward put him in position to cross for Danilo to make it 3-1. An assist on his debut was something for him to take away from the night at least. Tavernier went to left-back for the final 20 minutes.

Attendance and anger must be noted

The discussion of the Ibrox factor has become a staple of the build-up to European matches over recent seasons. Rightly so, too. The home crowd has been the twelfth man on many occasions and Martin needed it more than ever here.

He knew that his players had to earn the backing, though. The decibel level peaked when the Champions League theme reverberated around the stadium. The first goal punctured the atmosphere, the second burst the balloon completely. The third, meanwhile, was followed by a chorus of boos and barrage of abuse that is normally reserved for the final stages of a tenure.

There was widespread bemusement when Aarons elected to stop the play – despite the referee signalling that Rangers could continue – while Carlos Forbs was lay in the middle of the park. Talk about not understanding your surroundings.

Danilo’s goal to make it 3-1 briefly roused those who were still here in a crowd that was counted at around 43,000. That in itself was telling. The sight of empty seats should be kept in mind by the board as they consider where Rangers are and where they are heading this term.