The Gers only returned for pre-season under a fortnight ago but face an early test against a talented Belgian outfit in Govan.
Martin is keen to see his players operate amid a heavy pre-season training load and believes the fixture will be important in helping his players gain an understanding of how he wants the side to look.
Speaking to RangersTV to reflect on his side’s pre-season work and preview Sunday’s friendly, he commented: “The players are going to be tired going into it because that’s the point of pre-season.
“For us to manage a squad right now and keep them fresh for a pre-season game is counter productive.
“They’ve had a big week this week, but I still want to see a performance that is starting to look like us, to gauge where we’re at, and their willingness to run under fatigue.
“There will be a lot of different changes personnel wise while we balance the minutes and get closer to the Panathinaikos game.
“I want to see the players put in a performance where they can start to understand and see things come together.
“We need to put a performance on the pitch where the fans can see an idea or a way the team may look when they’re fresh and have a few more players in the building.
“Since I’ve been here how people have been with us, the willingness to buy into what we’re asking them to do, staff and players, the fans I’ve bumped into around the city, has been amazing.
“I’ve mentioned before the responsibility and honour of being the Head Coach at this club is huge. I want to do it justice and repay everyone for the trust in us to do that.
“That starts on Sunday at Ibrox, and I want us to put in a performance where people start to realise that it could be exciting.”
The Gers will depart for a week-long intensive training camp at St. George’s Park after Sunday’s clash at Ibrox.
It promises to be important bonding time for the side who have been bolstered this week by the additions of Joe Rothwell and Emmanuel Fernandez.
Martin admits he has been delighted with the energy and application from his players on the training pitch since returning for pre-season as they build towards the UEFA Champions League qualifying encounter with Panathinaikos later this month.
He added: “It’s been brilliant. All we can ask for is for them to give us everything they have energy wise and they’ve done that.
“I’ve been really pleased with the working culture on the pitch; they’re maxing out and giving us full effort every day.
“It’s really easy to say that it’s the minimum requirement but it’s not; sometimes you need to work a bit to get there.
“They’re working under big fatigue so they’re running a lot because the team will be based on how hard we work and how brave we are.
“That will be the core of it regardless of how anything else looks. It’s about how we run and how hard we work, and we’re doing that.
“They’re having to sink a lot because there’s a lot of new information to take on, but they’re really doing some good stuff and I’m pleased.
“We purposely put them into a game at the weekend under big fatigue. They had a massive day on the day before; it wasn’t about the performance as such but rather seeing them do things that we want them to do while being really tired.
“The international players coming back has added a new energy and freshness.”
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