Mikey Moore hooked at half-time - Three decisions Russell Martin got wrong against Genk
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(Credit: Imago)
Ben Palmer
Thu 25 September 2025 22:16, UK
Rangers wasted the opportunity to get their Europa League campaign off to a winning start after several missteps from Russell Martin.
The Bears lost 1-0 to a Genk side that currently sits 14th in the Belgian Pro League’s 16-team table, winning just two of their opening eight games of the season.
Jack Butland did his best to keep Rangers alive by saving former Celtic striker Oh Hyun-gyu‘s penalty, but could do little when his defence parted like the Red Sea to allow the South Korean striker to find the back of the net in the 55th minute.
Martin is coming under increasing pressure at Rangers as four wins from 14 games in charge is now the Bears’ worst start to a season in well over 50 years.
And the former Southampton boss did little to help himself after making a series of puzzling decisions with his team selection.
Credit: Hasan Karim, Breaking Media
Rangers signed Mikey Moore on loan from Tottenham this summer with great hopes that the youngster would develop into a match-winner from the wing this season.
However, Martin‘s insistence on playing the 18-year-old at right wing seems to be hampering the Englishman’s growth.
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Moore is desperate to drive at a full-back, pulling them wide and out of position, before swivelling inside and getting a shot off.
Credit: Manh Tung, Breaking Media
But doing so as a right-footed player cutting in from the right is unnatural; it is why the likes of Arjen Robben and Cristiano Ronaldo were used on the right and left wings, respectively.
Moore had three shots on goal, with none of them being on target, before being replaced by Oliver Antman at half-time.
Until Martin moves the Spurs loanee to the left, Rangers will never see the best of him and the former Southampton boss would have been better off giving his Finnish winger a start, despite his recent drop-off in form.
Youssef Chermiti joined Rangers from Everton on deadline day for a package worth £10m, which was a surprising fee given he never scored in 24 appearances for the Premier League side.
Much like when the Toffees signed him from Sporting CP in 2023, he was seemingly brought to Ibrox because of his potential.
Standing at 6ft4, Chermiti is quick and technically talented.
However, the Portuguese striker doesn’t score.
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He didn’t do it for Everton, he hasn’t done it for Rangers.
That’s a long time without finding the back of the net for a striker who has cost £25m since that strike two years ago.
The 21-year-old was not helped by the lack of service after the Bears went down to 10 men, but the striker offered little before then, only touching the ball seven times in the first half and doing little when he had it.
Chermiti may come good as the tools are there and the Rangers hierarchy clearly liked the look of him, but starting him in a winnable game in the Europa League is a puzzling decision.
The third summer signing to make the list, which comes as no surprise given how busy Rangers were in revamping their squad in the window just gone.
Thelo Aasgaard was deployed as a sort of No.
10, central midfielder hybrid against Genk, and whilst the idea of a position-less player with dangerous dribbling abilities sounds great in theory, what it actually led to was the Norway international looking lost on when he should be bombing forward, and when to contribute defensively.
Credit: Imago
There are high expectations for the former Luton man, particularly after he scored four goals in his country’s 11-1 win over Moldova from the bench in the most recent international break.
But against Genk, a team that set up to clog the midfield and exploit the wings as their means of attacking outlet, playing Aasgaard so deep was a decision that made little sense from Martin.
Given that Chermiti looked so isolated up top, pushing the natural attacking midfielder further forward would have undoubtedly given Rangers a better chance of scoring.