Is Martin only winner in one of worst Old Firm derbies?

A poor start to a league season in 42 years, four wins in four Scottish Premiership games, and zero shots on target.

After one of the worst Old Firm derbies ever, Rangers head coach Russell Martin will experience some much-needed relief.

Many expected Brendan Rodgers’ side to respond to Celtic’s midweek European disappointment by upping the Ibrox boss’s intensity.

Instead, the adversaries engaged in a frantic battle with little attacking potential.

Rangers (0.15) and Celtic (0.17) combined expected goals of 0.32 were the final score of Sunday’s game. That is bad, in essence. Very poor

It is the lowest total accumulated in a Premiership game since the xG stat was introduced in the 2019-20 season.

That essentially means that neither party’s chances produced were particularly good.

Rangers failed to score in a league game for the first time since an Old Firm derby in January 2021, when they had no shots on target.

Celtic only had two at the time. Rodgers’ side had not even attempted an effort at half-time, which was a first for them in a league game since November 2017.

They are also the only Premiership team to have this season’s first-half goaltender faltered against Rangers.

There were eight in St Mirren, three in Motherwell, and three in Dundee. In the first half of their League Cup defeat at Ibrox earlier this month, third-tier Alloa Athletic failed to score a single goal.

Before making a 3,500-mile trip home from Kazakhstan on Tuesday, Rodgers’ men had played extra-time and penalties, but that is still a somber figure for a Celtic side struggling at the top end of the pitch.

Rangers can find solace in the fact that they were a defensive jerk on Wednesday when they lost to Club Brugge.

Martin told BBC Scotland, “I was really pleased with the response.” particularly the players who haven’t played much recently.

Only their League Cup last-16 victory over Alloa, and even that, they conceded twice, makes Martin’s side’s only win in their last seven games.

Their worst league start since 1983, when they have won four games without winning in the Premiership this year.

Their current five-game losing streak in the Premiership is their worst since at least 2013-14, including their draw away at Hibernian on the final day of last season.

Despite all of that, Martin can still be upbeat during the upcoming international break.

With the Rangers hierarchy present, it would have become increasingly difficult for them to ignore the fan fury that would have unavoidably followed a further defeat.

Martin’s more organized and disciplined approach ultimately resulted in his first Premiership clean sheet.

The Rangers boss continued, “I’m disappointed we didn’t win because I thought we were good for large parts.”

However, I’m really proud of the players’ level of aggression, both inside and outside the building.

There was a lot of that, according to the author, who said that today was a big focus to really fight and show some unity, spirit, and aggression.

It’s a crucial clean sheet and crucial point, they say. Six points off the top of the standings frustrates us, but it also gives us something to hunt.

Martin will need to significantly improve his 11 games winning streak to start the hunt, and do so quickly.