By Ben Banks

Copyright glasgowworld

A talkSPORT pundit has said a Celtic humbling in Europe shows why it’s not as bad as it seems for Russell Martin at Rangers. The Light Blues head coach is under serious pressure and ultras group The Union Bears have called for his sacking amid three wins in 12 opening games. They face Hibs in the Premier Sports Cup this weekend after defeat to Hearts in the Premiership on Saturday, having already drawn four times in the league alongside a 9-1 hammering over two legs versus Club Brugge in their Champions League play-off. Having navigated their way past Panathinaikos and Viktoria Plzen, Brugge swept them aside 3-1 at Ibrox and then 6-0 away from home. Celtic – who lost to Kairat Almaty on penalties – were in the league phase of the Champions League last season. While they did impress and got out that section, they did lose 7-1 to Borussia Dortmund. That is part of the basis for why ex-Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan is defending Martin. Jordan said on talkSPORT: “Of course he’s culpable for not being able to alleviate the pressures that the players feel that they’re under. He’s right to say, I mean, I think he’s remarkably tolerant in that interview because I think he should be a bit more assertive with the journalists. Talk about the journey that he’s on and the direction of travel he understands that he’s got to get to. “He started okay against Panathinaikos and Viktoria Plzen, didn’t he, and then came unstuck against Club Brugge. Which to be fair, I thought they would. Didn’t help they got a player sent off, and the fans are not having him. This is an established Champions League side. This is a side that’s been in the Champions League for two or three seasons now. “With respect, Scottish teams can get hammered. You’ve got Borussia Dortmund spanking the backsides of Celtic last year, 7-1. So the fact of the matter is they’ve not given the guy a chance. Now, I don’t know whether the style of football is good enough. I feel for him a little bit. I think that he was the architect of his own downfall last year. “I hope that they stay with him, give him a bit more latitude. I know it’s five games and you can’t have one game that goes badly over there, but pack it in. It should not be fans that pick football managers. It should be those that are making decisions that are balanced upon all their views, that are looking at the bigger picture and understanding why they employed him in the first place. Because there’s no understanding of why they employed Russell Martin, because he said it himself. “The fans didn’t want me here in the first place. So they must have seen something in him, right? Unless he’s a complete bluffer, unless he’s a complete bait and switch merchant, they should have the strength of character to go, well, we saw this from him and that we believe that if we give him enough time and enough of a chance to get his head, we’re going to get it right. “Now if he is a bait and switch merchant, they suddenly realise that he isn’t what he said he was like Frank de Boer was found out at Crystal Palace pretty early, then make the decision. Don’t do it because a bunch of fans are deciding now that they’re not having him. It might be justified because it might be the long game isn’t good enough. I don’t think you can define that after five or six games.”