Leicester City manager Russell Martin has said criticism of him has "become really personal" as he opened up on a turbulent start to the season with the League One club.
Leicester were tipped by many to bounce straight back to the Championship after suffering back-to-back relegations from the Premier League. Instead they sit 18th in the third tier after five games, with Martin's side managing just one win, two draws and two defeats, leaving them at their lowest ever position in the club's 142-year history.
The Foxes were thrashed 4-0 at home to Oxford United last weekend, a result that left Martin's job under intense scrutiny as he faced chants of "sacked in the morning" from both the home and travelling fans.
Speaking ahead of Leicester's match against Stockport County on Saturday, Martin addressed the criticism and the toll it has taken on those close to him. "It has become really personal from some guys in the media and definitely from fans," he said. "It is what it is, and I have to deal with it. It doesn't affect me too much, genuinely, but it is really difficult for the people around me, who know me and understand me and know what I am."
Martin is married to Lucy Pinder, an English glamour model who has appeared in a number of men's magazines.
"I don't know why I upset so many people," Martin added. "One of the players asked me this week why I am so criticised outside of here, because obviously they see stuff, and I can't answer it."
Players back Martin's philosophy
Martin has been working to implement a possession-heavy style of play, an approach that has already turned off many fans. Former Leicester forward Matt Piper described it as "passing teams to death."
The 40-year-old manager still appears to have the backing of his squad. Captain Harry Souttar said after last weekend's Oxford defeat that responsibility for the result lay "solely" with the players.
Defender Jayden Joseph, 20, said the squad believes in Martin's approach and urged patience from supporters. "We need to give it that bit of time for it all to come together," he said.
Martin defends his playing style
Speaking on Friday, Martin said there was a gap between perception and reality when it came to his methods. "Speak to the players and people I've worked with, and then people who have never seen it and have maybe watched a few clips of some bits, and it's a very different perception from reality," he said. "But I guess when you try to do something that is a bit different to some, then it's always there to be shot at."
He doubled down on his approach, insisting he remains committed to developing players even if results have been slow to follow. "I love what I do, I love my job and love always trying to develop people and players by playing in a way where I think they can bring the best version of themselves," he said. "Sometimes it takes time. It's not easy, but I will always choose to try to embark on something that I really believe in that focuses on trying to develop whilst winning. And maybe I'm in the wrong job for that."
"There is enough feeling from me and the players I work with that it can be really brilliant at times," he continued. "I always have to keep learning and I spent a long time out of the game after Rangers and spent a lot of time watching different football and trying to sharpen my tools."
"The most frustrating thing is that I've enjoyed the process here so much so far and it's not quite shown with the results, but I'm convinced it will. Otherwise, I wouldn't do it. So ultimately I'll keep doing what I'm doing and hopefully we will be really successful and I really believe we can be."
A difficult run for Martin
Martin guided Southampton to the Premier League via the play-offs in the 2023-24 Championship season. Since then, he has won only three of his last 28 league matches across two years with three different clubs, Southampton, Rangers and Leicester, for an 11 per cent win ratio.
His spell at Scottish giants Rangers saw him win just one of his seven league matches, drawing five and losing the other. Across 17 games in all competitions there, he recorded just five victories before departing.
