Two years ago, current Inverness manager, John Hughes, was guest of honour at the CQN Golf Day. For around two hours during the meal he spoke privately to me about John Collins.
Hughes worked alongside Collins at Livingston and regarded our new assistant manager as the most insightful, tactically aware and innovative person he’d met in the game. According to Hughes, Collins could see things hidden to others, including himself. He could spot weaknesses in opposition teams and make telling observations about his own players and formations.
When recruiting anyone to the management team we want to hear endorsements like this. Most of the CQN demographic are old enough to remember times when managers’ and assistants’ most important attribute was their ability to bang his first on a table and yell “Get stuck right intae them” with a legendary level of authority.
This model of the desirable manager is still valued by British clubs, it’s a superstition which has been fed by famous and successful table bangers like Sir Alex Ferguson, but Ferguson’s Fist was not the source of his magic touch. More than anything else, Ferguson’s successful longevity was his insistence on appointing insightful, tactically aware innovators as assistants, who were often more switched-on than he was.
I wanted a student of the game as manager but I also want another strong tactical head as assistant. The last thing a manager actually needs as his assistant is his pal, or someone who is good at shouting, or even someone to be a buffer between him and the players. Whoever puts the cones out at Lennoxtown, like the Scottish physio at Chelsea, can be the players’ pal, cum-go-between, cum-nag.
One of football’s many inefficiencies is the managerial structure. Unlike other industries, the responsibility and wage gaps between the man with the top job and his assistant are huge. There is no reason for this, in fact, it’s mad. You always need a hierarchy but the no. 2 should have duties, responsibilities and pay only a fraction less than his immediate superior. The huge disparities in authority which are common do not give you a functioning team, at best you have a less efficient autocracy.
As we’ve said for years, guru managers don’t exist, but good, properly constituted, management teams do.
Those in the management team, responsible for spending millions of pounds of our money each year, of making tactical decisions against the best teams in Europe, need to be oracles of the game. Anything less and we’re indulging in one of football’s glaring and costly inefficiencies.
John Collins fits the profile. He also doesn’t suffer fools, with strong ideas on training, fitness, laxity, drinking, diet and off-field behaviour. For Celtic, all of this is necessary. Footballers are elite athletes but there is enormous variation in how dedicated they are to their personal development. This doesn’t exist in elite participants in sports like athletics, where you don’t get near the podium without a puritanical level of commitment to your development, and to your coach’s instructions.
You can also forget any concerns about Scott Brown. The Scott Brown of 2014, who as Neil Lennon’s captain was responsible for imposing misdemeanor fines on players, is more like John Collins than he is like the Scott Brown of 2007.
Over the last seven years we have built the sports science, medical, technical analysis and scouting capacity, all of which are particularly impressive, but the management team has always had a homespun feel about it. In 10 years of CQN I’ve never backed a Celtic management appointment, but with the appointment of Ronny Deila and John Collins we have a new type of management team. There are no guarantees of immediate success in any walk of life, and Champions League qualification this season will still be exposed to the vagaries of sport, but I’m delighted we finally have what looks like a properly constituted team in the dug out.
Visit the CQN Bookstore to get Tommy Gemmell to sign your personal copy of his book, All the Best.
[calameo code=0003901719d82038831a9 lang=en page=126 hidelinks=1 width=100% height=500]
757 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- ...
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- ...
- 20
- »
TBJ
Naw he was holding Daffy in his haun :-)
That is if the ducks at front.
jude2005
Thanks but it’s not building work that’s all finished.Just had an extension built at a very good price.This guy was only to put blinds on the windows and doors.
Water is it got to be this one, the drink of the discerning cross border Tim…
http://www.eauceltic.com/bouteille-pet.html
Mon the Chile..
Iniesta is about the only Spaniard that would get into that Chile side.
Sitter Busquets!
Busquets…sitter !
Sebo Busquets. Sitter
WeeFra
You been on the spirits?
Biscuits misses a sebo … Karma ;)
Genny Wren tailed off bhoys
Good Evening Timland.
Kevj…..provocative p#sh,keep it up great one,
yer everyman at the end of the bar!!!!!
Weefra
I apologise for bringing up duck ,,, indigestion :(
Genny blunders, pulling up.
Should have realised he was going to overcharge.The name of the company was”Rob You Blinds.”
malorbhoy
19:58 on 18 June, 2014
Minx 1888
A truly wonderful turn out for John’s Requiem Mass nearly 500 people, standing room only, and at the end of the service the song that was going to be the first dance at their wedding was played a truly poignant moment and not many had a tear in their eyes
RIP John Aitken and god bless his family
—
Thanks not surprised at the turn out a lovely guy taken way too soon for those left behind. But I know his Dad will be there to welcome him!
RIP John Aitken
theglasgowcelticway
I have a great deal for you..meet me the morra ootside bookies in Halfway.hh
I do believe that no one is taking my postings seriously.
Just you BritNats wait till I get you oota ma Independent Scotland!
MWD says AYE
hamiltontim
21:05 on 18 June, 2014
Googy
No need, she doesn’t leave the wine in the fridge long enough!!
Yer new speedos look good lol
HT
Not a drop, for a change. :-))
TBJ
I missed that, but couldn’t give a duck. :-))
Weefra HH praying to Wee Oscar.
You’ll get about 10 retirals fae that Spain squad
This Chile team are good.
Vidal should have held his run there.Vidal you don’t need to go so soon:-)))
Bada
Dya reckon the Spanish manager does walking away ?
I’m delighted we finally have what looks like a properly constituted team in the dug out.
—–
With all due respect, Paul – we already had this in place in the form of Lenny and Johan.
If Ronny and John are as successful as Neil and Johan over the next few years, I’ll be happy.
!!bada bing!!
21:29 on 18 June, 2014
You’ll get about 10 retirals fae that Spain squad
Think some have already retired. Like Torres
Googy
The ones in the pic are really designed for two people in the one :-)
WeeFra
Poltergeist……spirit……:-)
Chile indeed a vy good team but spanish goose cooked.
Tgcw
I reckon Vidal has cut them up short at the back and down the sides
Sanchez running riot
!!bada bing!!
A great price, they’re a solid looking team.
Looks like game over for Spain, off to work :(
Can just see Torres turn this round?????????
an dun
Shhhhh! Dinny be silly now. They were not a project managent team!
MWD says AYE
TBJ -Aye the manager and about 10 players will go IMO,the end of a beautiful team.
Chile still available 20/1 to win WC
Evening all, seems Spains time of domination has passed, they did play wonderful football, but all things come to an end.
So, have we signed anybody yet?
Finnbogason, Pirlo? Anybody? :-)
Bada
I’m sure Spain have enough talent available to develop a new team to take on the world but I think a change in tactics and style will come too
They earned the right to represent their country after double Euro and one World Cup win. Well done to them but their time appears to be over.