Rangers midfielder Joe Rothwell believes the club could be entering a season-defining period as they bid to avert a full-blown crisis at Ibrox.
A lacklustre 1-1 draw at St Mirren on Sunday afternoon continued their poor form under new boss Russell Martin.
By failing to win any of his opening three league games, Martin has now made the worst start of any Rangers manager in 36 years as his side sit slumped in seventh place in the Premiership.
They travel to face Club Brugge in the second leg of their Champions League play-off tie on Wednesday night, aiming to overturn a 3-1 deficit.
Martin’s misfiring side will then face Celtic at Ibrox on Sunday - already trailing their bitter rivals by six points in the title race.
With fans already calling for the manager to be sacked, it promises to be a massive week for Martin if he is to turn things around.
Asked about the magnitude of the two games Rangers will face this week, as well as the crisis threatening to engulf the club, Rothwell said: ‘I think we just have to try and try and block it out as much as you can.
‘We know the magnitude of the games that are coming up. Obviously, Wednesday night is a massive game for us against Brugge.
‘If we can go there and turn that tie around, then it’ll obviously give us massive confidence going into the weekend game.
‘And then we play that game (against Celtic), who knows where it can take us if we manage to pick up three points?
‘I think it be a can be a defining week, two massive games in two different competitions and obviously we want to be playing Champions League football.
‘That’s obviously the aim, so if we can go out there and do that take the momentum into Sunday and then that hopefully can be a season-defining moment for us.
‘It doesn’t seem to be quite clicking at the minute, individually and collectively, on my behalf, there is no one more disappointed with our form at the minute.
‘But as I say, we just need to stick together, keep working hard and doing what we’re doing on the training ground and hopefully we’re not far away.’
Asked if there is still a belief within the squad that Rangers can mount a title challenge, Rothwell continued: ‘We have to believe that.
‘It’s six points (gap to Celtic) at the minute. Obviously we play them on Sunday and, if we get a result, it’s down to three.
‘Then obviously things might start to swing and a bit of positive momentum in our direction and then we can obviously hopefully kick on from there.
‘Everyone’s really disappointed with how the season started, nothing just seems to be quite clicking for us at the minute.
‘So we just need to stick together, keep doing what we’re doing on the training ground, and then hopefully the results start to come for us.’
There is a growing sense of unrest among the Rangers supporters, with fans once again venting their anger at full-time in Paisley on Sunday.
That came on the back of a disastrous performance against Brugge in the first leg last week, a game which saw many fans leave Ibrox early after Rangers fell 3-0 behind after just 20 minutes.
Rothwell accepts that fans are within their rights to express their frustration, adding: ‘Obviously, there’s been no one more disappointed than the fans. They pay their money to come and watch us and us get the results for them.
‘But as I say, inside the change room, we’re all still together and we know that we’re just that little bit away from where we want to be but there’s so many games coming thick and fast that there’s a chance for us to go out there and really show what we want to do.
‘And hopefully then the results will start to turn for us. Speaking to a few people, I knew what to expect before coming here.
‘The fans just want the results and we want to give it to them and at the minute, it’s just not quite going how we want it to go, but obviously they’re entitled to be disappointed, as we expect.
‘But we just need them to obviously stick with us and rally together and hopefully then we’re not far away from getting the results.’