nicolas raskin has described the moment Russell Martin told him he was not in his plans, during a tense spell at Rangers that came just days before the summer transfer window closed. The midfielder says the conversation happened while he was away on international duty with Belgium, after being frozen out of the squad, banished from training, and made to watch an Old Firm match from home. His account now frames a season that has swung from isolation to a prominent role in Rangers’ revival under Danny Rohl.
The call that changed everything
Raskin said Martin phoned him and made it clear that leaving Ibrox would be best. He said the manager told him he was not part of the plan and that, whatever happened, he would not be part of it. Raskin replied that he would return to training on Monday and speak properly then, rather than forcing a move before the deadline.
He has said he still does not understand why the situation escalated so sharply. The midfielder described a period in which he was left out of first-team training, excluded from major fixtures, and placed in a position where the end of his Rangers career seemed possible. But he insisted he never believed that his time at the club was finished.
From exclusion to revival
The story has since taken a dramatic turn. Raskin says the current spell under Danny Rohl has been a major reset, and he has spoken warmly about the manager’s impact after the earlier turmoil. In his telling, the season has moved from being pushed aside to becoming central to Rangers’ title push from midfield.
That shift has also carried international significance. Raskin said a place on Belgium’s World Cup plane is now likely, after a year in which his standing with the national team has risen sharply. He described a much smoother path with Belgium, where he has settled into the starting side and built momentum alongside established names in midfield.
The contrast with his club situation is stark. Just months after being on the receiving end of a public dressing-down and being left out of key matches, he is now part of the discussion around Rangers’ direction and the standards being set under Rohl.
Reactions and the strange aftermath
Raskin also recalled a bizarre aftermath to the stand-off, saying that after being told to regain trust at the club, he later found himself on a team-bonding outing with Martin at Loch Lomond and Conic Hill. He said the mood felt as if nothing had happened, even though the relationship had been strained only days earlier.
He described that as a strange moment in a season full of them, especially after the period when he was alone in the stand for a match and unsure what came next. He said the sequence left him confused because one week felt like a rupture and the next like business as usual.
What it means now
For Rangers, nicolas raskin’s account is a reminder of how quickly a season can flip inside one dressing room. For the player, it is a story of refusing to walk away, even when the club appeared to be moving him on. The next chapter now depends on whether that revival under Danny Rohl holds through the run-in and whether Raskin’s form continues to match his changing status at Ibrox.
