Leicester City’s Russell Martin says criticism he receives ‘very personal’

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Leicester City’s Russell Martin says the criticism he has received over his poor start to the 2026/27 season is “very personal”.

He was speaking ahead of the team’s away game at Stockport, where the Foxes sit 19th in the league with five points and just one win from five games.

Leicester City fans left the stadium early during their 4-0 home defeat to Oxford last weekend, calling for Martin to be sacked, while others sang “Your football is terrible”.

But things got worse on social media, where the reaction was incredible and now users are being blamed for what they said about him.

“It’s become very personal with some people in the media and certainly the fans,” Russell Martin said before the game. “So that’s what I have to deal with.”

“Overall, it doesn’t affect me that much, but it’s really difficult for the people around me who know me, understand me, and understand me.

“The label, I don’t know, yeah, it’s interesting. Because if the people that work with me and know me, it’s very different from the outside world’s perception.

“So I hope these guys, hopefully have found that with Southampton and the players, yes. If you talk to the players and the people I work with and those who have never seen it and maybe seen some footage, it’s a very different perception and reality.

“But I think when you try to do something that’s a little bit different from some people, then it’s always going to be attacked.

“I think six or seven years later I love what I do and I feel enough about the players I work with that sometimes it’s really outstanding”

He added: “I think everyone here has coped with the change brilliantly, the staff, the players and the end result and I believe it’s because of how much hard work everyone has put in and they all really want to succeed and now have these guys in the dressing room that they really like and really care about. I think it’s going to pay off.”

“But also knowing it’s not going to be easy, so we have to focus on the work and the process, keep learning, try to improve and improve the process as much as possible, these young guys will take off, they will be helped by experienced people and I believe we will still have a very successful season, that’s why I can be very calm in front of you and believe that sincerely.”

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Here’s how fans reacted after Leicester City player Russell Martin said the criticism he received was “very personal”…

Dr. @Gavin_Brewis: Genuinely think people need to be careful in reporting on this guy. Jason Arday felt the hysteria surrounding him at the moment. Annoying manager, but I don’t think it’s worth the constant personal attacks on his character and life.

@dannohagen: At some point, we need to call out the treatment of Russell Martin – a very public form of bullying. Criticism of a coach is one thing, but when criticism becomes personal, a line must be drawn. He looked like the weight of the world was resting on him.

@JacobHorsfall_: I think Martin from ten years ago would have been hailed as one of the best emerging managers. Sadly, his football is likely to fall into the category of idealism in a world of pragmatism. However, some of the things said about him are 100% OTT

@Rampant_Jack: I do have some sympathy for him. He came to Rangers, underperformed and was sacked. That’s it, I don’t understand the hateful mob that goes after him on social media. He’s gone and our failure is not entirely with him but with the football club.

@geemagicjay: As bad as he is as a manager. That’s not what drives him to such a level of hatred. This is his personality. He’s just very arrogant and often puts the blame on others. He constantly raises with fans and players the anxieties and other issues we all face. When the real problem is HIS!

@TomHTAFC46: Every interview reaches at least 500,000, this is so unreal🤣🤣

@jackmacklfc: I sincerely hope that Russell Martin has the right people, family and friends around him to help him get through this extremely difficult time. You can see in his eyes how much he is struggling and as fans and media we all have a responsibility to analyze the performance of a game but don’t take it too far! For Russell and Leicester, hopefully they can turn things around and only they and the fans can do that.

@BladesBall: The treatment of Russell Martin is truly baffling. He is and was a decent, up-and-coming head coach who has been completely destroyed by the media, pundits, and some stupid fans. Almost every post about him is filled with crowds of Rangers fans.

@FearlessFox_: His comments about the media being too critical are correct but I do think he needs to appreciate that at Milton Keynes and Swansea he did very little, at Southampton he did very little and then struggled to adapt and Rangers were a complete disaster so a lot of it was him not helping himself



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