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.
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Pog
2 ladies lead your group at mo :-)
HH
CRC
Mrs CRC also knows her place
Must be on top of you – ooops
Away to watch the footie. Night Night Timland.
Weefra HH praying to Wee Oscar.
Difficult to explain Spain’s embarrassing exit what with all the great players they have. It wasn’t that they didn’t try but their style of play depends on precision passing and really high levels of skill. If even a few players are performing below their peak it’s not sustainable.
beatbhoy
Chuckled at that masel!!
Cowiebhoy
22:57 on
18 June, 2014
Aah wish, but not while I’m stuck in Bristol :-)
HH
CRC
I’d imagine Brazil would be hoping for a Croatia win tonight, as it would leave Cameroon with nothing to play for,except pride, in their match against them.
CowieBhoy, steady chief!
CRC, good, just as I planned:-)
Doc/Cowiebhoy
We doing CQN lunch club Friday?
HH
CRC
Mon the draw! CnC
:-)
I better not respond to that one
Doc too busy with his spatulas on Friday, by the way :-)
I think Cahill is playing in the USA for big bucks just now.
That Croatia strip wd give you sare ees!!
CowieBhoy, you do not want to know what I am too busy with next Friday, ouch surgery!
Not on me btw.
Turkeybhoy
22:30 on
18 June, 2014
Bawsman
12:48 on
18 June, 2014
http://www.celticnewsnow.com/m/news/case-re-opened-please/95827
Paul, time to crank the heat up on this guy. Neck and blow torch doesn’t touch it.
How CAN he be in post!!!!!
I agree 100%.This whole episode was a farce.A slap in the face to every team that played fairly,and to justice.
We must take this charlatan to task.A brilliant different slant to the scandal.
——————————————————————-
Was discussing this with Auldheid the other day. The SFA is a closed shop – accountable to no-one but themselves. Jog on, Timmy…
I can’t believe Spain did not have Fernando Llorente, ex- Bilbao now with the despicable Rubentus, in their squad. He has a very good season in Serie A despite playing for the thieves.
He would have given Spain an alternative, using his height and is no slouch on the ground also.
Thank you Spain for giving us the chance to see players playing intelligent football over the last six years. I hope the allegations of dodgy blood doping are wrong.
Xavi & Iniesta were & hopefully will a pleasure to watch as well as being top men who are also appreciative of our club.
Embdae know why Trevor Brooking got a knighthood?
Olic 1-0. Good wee striker.
Been busy all week, so not been on CQN.
Paul67, hope your right., but I see JC a big risk with his massive ego.
In addition, most managers pick their own backroom staff and that works. I see JC as a PL appointment and Ronnie will be looking over his shoulder. Perhaps I am wron.
If it is also true that John Park is moving to Director of Football then may I suggest that this is a very bold and risky move.
I hope we are heading for a very successful time and not another Mowbray (PL inspired) moment.
That is the million pound question.
HH
CRC
Mr T had no chance with that one….
B B
Come on. He was a classy player and a great friend of big Jock. There I took the bait.
bournesouprecipe
23:21 on 18 June, 2014
You move the page margin…:)
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
Dallas
Have bad vibes about the Spanish team and blood doping. Rangers and Spain could be cheat brothers. I Bumped into a wee Spaniard called Novo once, in Knightswood where he lived. Asked him if he had been to mass in Corpus Christi? His answer convinced me that the hun had set up a poor wee gullible, money loving Spaniard. :)
Bada
For services to insomnia?
I think he was appointed by PL and will take over…..eventually, needs to get his phone book out and use it wisely ask Henry and Trezeguet for their tips and the kudos and we might get some gems to polish. Could play a bit to so trust will be earned quicker
CRC stop being so negative, this is going to be a top duo , I predict CL quarters!
HH over optimisticCFC!
Read that the Japanese fans stayed behind and cleaned up their area the other night.
CRC
Good points there pal. Hope ur wrong btw!!!
Delaney’s, you have to be lauded for speaking to Ignatio. Your goodness shines through speaking that wee keich..
Novo reminds me of the film Angel Heart, where Mickey Rourke’s original incarnation in the film had sold his soul to the devi,brilliantly played by Robert De Niro, Louis Cypher.
Le Petit Merde was the first to sell his soul to the sticky bun Lucifer.
BSR, inspiring:-)
Song continues the bad night for Barca players, Sanchez excepted, by getting a stupid red card. They were still well in this game too.
Long overdue for Song………………should have got one at Celtic Park…..Karma
Mo and IgNo were not the enemy………that’s just daft.
Huns and their pals in the scoddish meeja –
that’s who dunnit.
HH.
Looks like cameroons hopes are going for a song
WGS now knows how Christ felt on Calvary
…………..embdy who has had to listen to the boul’ IgNo would have to determine that is one who should be more pitied than revilked…………as for Mo?
….. bracket in the same camp as Charlie Nicko…..
…..skilful thicko?
HH
Was posted earlier but thought it needed a second airing.
John Collins speaking fluent French to the AS Monaco club tv folk at their training ground. He talks of the importance of his new role at Celtic.
http://www.asm-fc.com/en/article/john-collins-joins-celtic-65075.html
Even if he had to prepare the answers it was very impressive.
Welcome JC once again,
Or should that be Bienvenue.
HH