Russell Martin, who flamed out with Rangers, is a finalist for Crew coaching job
Does the road from Columbus to Glasgow run in both directions?
The Athletic reported Monday evening that Russell Martin, who most recently managed Scottish powerhouse Rangers, is a finalist for the Columbus Crew's vacant coaching position. The Disrespected confirmed, respectfully.
Earlier in the day, a tidbit of information had pinged into the switchboard at Casa D. It went like this: Crew will be hiring a coach, who will come with assistants, from overseas. I can't vouch for this tidbit, but it would fit if Martin indeed gets the job. Martin is English. Given his mother's lineage, he played internationally for Scotland. Toss in one or more assistants crossing the pond with him, and you're talking about a lot of visa paperwork – which might explain why the Crew's hiring process could extend into 2026.
I thought Crew GM Issa Tall would have a coach in place by Christmas. While he might get an announcement in before New Year's Day Thursday, it'll probably have to wait until January.
If Russell is a "finalist," that implies other candidates. I've been told this is the case, but I take it with a grain of salt. My hot take of the moment: Russell's name is out there and Occam's Razor may apply.
I haven't heard Laurent Courtois' name, or anyone else's, mentioned in nearly a month. But one never does know with Tall, who holds his cards close.
A decent primer on Russell, 39, starts with the Daily Record profile below. It was written after Russell was hired by Rangers – the Glasgow intra-city-uber-rival of Wilfried Nancy's Celtic. (There are a number of weird twists if Russell succeeds Nancy here in Columbus, and we'll get to them at some point.)
If you click on the story below, you'll find the headline, "Inside Russell Martin's colorful life from Rangers history to Buddhism, Green Party and Lucy Pinder."
Aye, a keen hook that is.
Robbie Copeland
An excerpt from one of the least juicy parts of the profile:
"'To try and be really dominant with the ball, play with purpose, play with ball speed, with good rhythm in the team,' is how Martin described his style after taking the Southampton job in 2023.
"He wants to dominate games and won't change that for anybody. You won't see a Russell Martin team play a goal-kick long except in desperate circumstances. It's all about keeping the ball, keeping in control and staying on top of teams.
"If that doesn't work, then he'd rather go down his way than diverge from his principles."
We know from the last interview with Tall that he prefers some kind of systemic continuity. Nobody plays quite like Nancy draws it up, but the way Martin likes to control the ball and dominate games jibes with the system within Crew's "One Club" philosophy.
Michael Arace
The other piece that's a good starting point for a Russell primer is the autopsy that was performed by The Athletic after Russell was fired after flaming out with Rangers:
If you don't have access to this story, the headline above fairly captures the gist of it.
Here's an excerpt:
(Nico) Raskin is a spiky character who has asked questions of previous managerial teams at Ibrox, but he is also the club’s best player, biggest asset, and a fan favourite. Rather than deal with it internally and sort it out quickly, the rift became public and dragged on for weeks. The stand-off created a manager-vs-player battle Martin could never win. He said the player had to earn the trust back of his team-mates, but Martin had repeatedly slated the mentality of those same players in public, saying some had to “drop their egos” after just one league game.
It meant he was fighting on multiple fronts in a war he was already losing. It was the moment many believe his troubled tenure became doomed. In many ways, the dispute and how he mishandled it was symptomatic of why his time in charge lasted just 123 days.
Here's a question: Will Nancy last longer with Celtic than Martin did with Rangers? I think so. Nancy has officially been on the job for 24 days. Yet ...
John Mcgarry
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Michael Arace
