Russell Martin gets Rangers backing ahead of Celtic clash - 'there's got to be more accountability'
Butland calls for players to take more responsibility and help under-fire boss
Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland says that the Rangers squad is sticking together and fighting for head coach Russell Martin amid searing pressure on the Ibrox boss.
Martin has yet to taste victory after three Premiership matches and presided over a horrific 6-0 Champions League qualification defeat by Club Brugge on Wednesday night that led to calls from supporters groups for him to resign.
Martin has been criticised for his style of play, while there is an ongoing saga with midfielder Nicolas Raskin, who is set to be left out of the starting XI for Sunday’s first Old Firm match of the season at Ibrox.
Appointed in early June by Rangers’ new ownership group, Martin says he has the full backing of the board and has held positive conversations with chairman Andrew Cavenagh, chief executive Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell. However, doubts have been raised that some of the senior members of playing staff are fully invested in his tenure.
However, asked if the players are still behind Martin, Butland responded: “Absolutely. It's something that people are always going to try and drive between people, but there's one thing that I've learned and that's that in football, you down tools and you give up, nothing can work.
“You stick together, you fight, you give yourself a chance, which is certainly something that we're doing as a group.
“The manager is going to take heat. It's also us on the pitch that need to carry out and do better at carrying out the jobs that we're being asked to do.
‘We’ve spoken about it as players’
“The manager, as always, is going to take the most pressure. He’s taken a lot of it on himself, as you do as a manager. But as players, there's got to be more accountability to perform better.
“If you look back at the other night, we have to be honest about individual actions and things that we didn’t do well enough. And that's on doing the jobs and holding yourself accountable and pride in your own job.
“The manager can't control things when you go over the line. You’ve got to go and do the job and do it properly, which we didn't do enough at times the other night — and in games where we haven't given ourselves the platform or the opportunity to carry out what we're trying to achieve.
“Whilst the manager is going to take heat, we've spoken about players, we've spoken individually as players. And there's a group between us that boys need to start doing better at what's being asked of us. And that's separate from the manager.
“But as we all know, the manager takes the most responsibility. He’s doing that for us. He’s taken that. We need to repay that and we need to be better as a group.
“Together is the only way things can be successful. If you're going to try and separate that and separate the manager and the players, that in turn is just not allowing things to develop and to get better.
“As players, we're together and behind the manager. The quickest way for things to go wrong is if you go the other way. Nothing works that way, regardless of who’s in charge.
“As players, we're paid to pay for this club. We're paid to come in, to work hard and do what the hierarchy, the manager and the club is asking of us. That's the bottom line, that's always been asked.
“We are with the manager, I've said it before, the only way that we can be successful is if we're together. If things beyond that change, that's above my station and nothing to do with me.
“That's the simple message for this group — to work hard, to do what's being asked of you, to do the minimum at least of what’s expected of you. If everyone does that, then it gives us the opportunity to be successful.”
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