
Rangers fans shocked to discover who Russell Martin's VERY recognisable girlfriend is - as new boss signs three-year deal at Ibrox
Rangers fans have expressed shock after finding out who Russell Martin's former topless model girlfriend Lucy Pinder is.
The former Scotland international defender signed a three-year contract at Ibrox just a week after a US-based consortium completed a takeover of the Glaswegian club.
The 39-year-old had a short stint at Rangers as a player in 2018 and moves to Scotland for his first job after being sacked by Southampton in December with the club languishing in the Premier League 's bottom spot.
Martin led the Saints to Championship promotion the previous season and enjoyed succesful spells at Swansea and MK Dons.
The Rangers ownership labelled him the 'standout choice' to take charge after a long recruitment process to replace Philippe Clement - with former captain Barry Ferguson leading the team since February.
Amid the initial fanfare over his appointment, some Rangers supporters took to social media to share their surprise after discovering who his partner is.
'How the f*** am I just now discovering Lucy Pinder,' one wrote on X.
'I still live in Scotland and I don't have a clue who she is,' another added.
But others were fully aware of the former glamour model.
'Where have you been,' one fan replied to the tweet.
'Your having a laugh aren't you mate,' another replied.
Pinder, 41, was at the height of her fame in the mid-2000s during the era of lads' mags such as FHM, Nuts and Loaded.
She appeared topless in Nuts Magazine was ranked on FHM's '100 Sexiest Women in the World'.
She also featured on Soccer AM, albeit fully clothed, and later entered the Celebrity Big Brother house in 2009.
One Rangers fan took to social media to express his shock at finding out who Lucy Pinder was
Pinder was discovered as a model on Bournemouth beach in 2003, at the age of 19, when she was working as a secretary.
She is a life-long Southampton supporter, but will be cheering on her husband from Ibrox rather than St Mary's next season.
Martin and Pinder went public with their relationship in August last year as she shared a picture of them together in Brighton, where Martin was receiving an honorary degree.
Martin's relationship with Pinder follows the breakdown of his marriage to Jasmine, with whom he shares three children and who he previously hailed as a 'supermum'.
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Scotsman
19 minutes ago
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Scotsman
35 minutes ago
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Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Slicker's personal nightmare - the 22-year-old culpable for all three goals conceded after replacing the injured Angus Gunn inside seven minutes - has masked what was another gruesome Scotland display across all areas of the pitch. I say 'another' because such horror shows are becoming all too frequent for Steve Clarke's side. Scotland head coach Steve Clarke looks downbeat during the 3-1 defeat to Iceland at Hampden on Friday. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group) | SNS Group In isolation, a 3-1 home loss against the nation sitting 74th in the Fifa rankings is bad enough. But against the backdrop of just one victory in nine Hampden outings - including miserable defeats to Greece, Poland and Northern Ireland - not to mention the lamentable showing at Euro 2024, it is little wonder that the Tartan Army are reaching breaking point. The boos which followed the half-time and full-time whistles on Friday proved as much. As did 20,000 empty seats, although exorbitant ticket prices for a friendly match almost certainly played a role in the reduced attendance. Has Clarke taken Scotland as far as he can? Scotland fans are entitled to expect better from their team. The consequence of such worrying form is that serious questions are again being raised over the direction of travel under Clarke as he enters the seventh, and likely final year of his tenure. The long-serving head coach has brought some great times to Scotland. Qualifying for back-to-back Euros to end a 23-year wait for a major finals will be his proud legacy, regardless of the disappointments he has also endured. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad However, every manager has a shelf life and it feels like the 61-year-old is approaching the end of his. Some would argue it has already expired. That Clarke has taken Scotland as far as he can and that fresh ideas are required ahead of the 2026 World Cup bid. Scotland's Cieran Slicker at full time after the 3-1 defeat to Iceland. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group) | SNS Group Social media has been awash with calls for the manager to be relieved of his duties over the past 48 hours. AI-generated pictures of Ange Postecoglou in a Scotland tie and blazer have also been circulated. The notion of Clarke being replaced by the ex-Tottenham and Celtic boss is a fanciful one. The Scottish FA, rightly or wrongly, will not be minded to deny Clarke the opportunity to see out the final year of his contract in spite of the wavering faith of the Tartan Army. But it is equally unlikely that Clarke will fulfil his dream of leading the nation to next year's tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico without a marked improvement in performances. Problems all over the pitch Solving the goalkeeper issue is an obvious priority. But providing Craig Gordon, Angus Gunn and Liam Kelly are fit again by September, then this will likely be resolved on its own, at least in the short term. It felt more like bad luck than bad judgement that Slicker ended up making his international debut having barely made a handful of senior appearances for Ipswich. The former Scotland Under-21 was in the squad to gain experience, rather than minutes on the park. A lesson for Clarke perhaps that he cannot afford to call up players who are not ready and able to play. One can only hope Slicker's career trajectory has not been fatally damaged by this unfortunate episode. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Where Clarke's problems run deeper is in his tactics, team selection and motivating his players. 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(Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group) | SNS Group Midfield strength must be harnessed Clarke also needs to solve the midfield dilemma over how best to utilise the strongest area of his team. Scott McTominay, Billy Gilmour, Lewis Ferguson, John McGinn - on paper a midfield that should dictate matches against better teams than Iceland but they were set up in such a way that allowed the opposition to run through them all too easily. With Ryan Christie to come back into the equation, and Lennon Miller emerging as a player of huge promise, Clarke has more than enough quality at his disposal to ensure the Scotland engine room functions properly - which includes freeing up McTominay to play centrally as an attacking force, which he has done to devastating effect with Napoli in Serie A this season. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad There is also the striking problem. Clarke gave George Hirst his chance against Iceland and, barring a poor miss with a first-half header, the Ipswich front man gave a decent account of himself, forcing two good saves from goalkeeper Elías Rafn Ólafsson and netting a goal which was ruled out for an offside against McTominay in the build-up. But it was another match which passed by without a Scotland striker hitting the target. It has been a year and counting since Lawrence Shankland headed the opener in the 2-2 draw with Finland. Has any team ever qualified for a World Cup without a striker finding the net?


Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
The new Rangers recruit flying under the Russell Martin radar but will feel the same pressure soon enough
There's one man who has slipped under the radar in the midst of the furore surrounding Russell Martin's arrival at Ibrox – that's Dan Purdy. But he'll come into full focus soon enough. Rangers' new technical director, replacing the unwanted Nils Koppen, came to mind when I remembered a quote from Arsene Wenger. The Frenchman, who knew a thing or two about being successful when he won three Premier League titles and seven FA Cup finals with Arsenal, was once asked what made a good manager. His answer was only two words long, but spoke volumes. 'Good players,' he said. Purdy, formerly of Everton, is now under every bit as much pressure as Martin in that case. Because Rangers' squad is in a state of flux and Martin's immediate future is partly dependent on Purdy's success rate in his operational sphere at Ibrox. Some players have gone and it remains to be seen if the like of Vaclav Cerny return after the conclusion of loan agreements. High-profile players like Nicolas Raskin could conceivably be allowed to go by the club's new owners to signal the start of a proper player trading model. Whatever happens, we are about to see the cut of Purdy's jib under difficult circumstances. Martin says he wants players who are brave enough to do his bidding. The same phrase applies to the talent spotter.