In the time I’ve been writing CQN, this is the eighth managerial change Celtic have gone through. A feature I have always noticed before is that we try to correct for the previous incumbent’s biggest weakness. Did Ange have a big weakness? The sense I am picking up from most on here is that, if anything, we would like more of the same. Change as little as possible and keep the caravan moving. But what was it about Ange that made him successful and, therefore, what do we need in the new man?
He must control alpha males who have often achieved more than you as players. They are usually from a different generation and are therefore culturally remote. The good ones have options and will leave if they don’t take to you, so a Mastery of Contained Authority is required.
Tactics are incredibly technical. Five or six players need to act on a cue from an opponent in tandem, get it wrong, and you will be shredded. Three years ago, we saw how a straightforward technical task like defending a set-piece is far more difficult than non-players could believe. Until recently, managers could survive on their eye for a player and by being the apex alpha, not anymore.
Celtic are on a good road technically. Recruitment and scouting have been focussed to deliver to Ange’s requirements. I would be very reluctant to throw that out for a new plan. We should choose a manager technically in-tune with our current strategy – or one prepared to learn quickly.
Leadership qualities extend beyond the dressing room. Ange excelled here, leading the entire club: fans, board, players, staff, even the media were under his spell. If you think this is easy, we should talk about Gordon Strachan’s time.
Recruitment can be the most important part of a football club. Gordon grew up a Hibs fan and would often watch them. Consequently, he signed three players from Easter Road. Martin O’Neill was once described to be by someone who worked closely with him as a “Match of the Day manager”. If he saw you play well on TV, he would want to sign you. It was not an efficient strategy.
The problem with recruitment is that the net needs to be cast worldwide. Managers often have two games a week and spare time to travel to watch a player is almost non-existent. Modern recruitment is more of a team effort than it was when many of today’s crop of managers first took charge. They need to be prepared to let go of some controls they had before. The manager is either a cog in the wheel, or he is a spanner. Too many are micro-managing spanners.
If players are not good enough, managers get the sack, so you can understand why they want this control, but changes in the game make them a liability. A manager who excels is one who can curtail his apex instincts and become primus inter pares at recruitment meetings.
Not all environments are the same and none are quite like Glasgow. The next Celtic manager needs to take a team to Ibrox in front of 50,000 hostile fans and fortify them for the task. Success or failure in this task alone could determine the outcome of your job in its entirety. Brendan Rodgers, Neil Lennon and Ange were all up to this job. Would a technically brilliant manager who has never faced anything more than a Scandinavian chill cope? How can we know?
Celtic have a shortlist of names that meet the criteria, one that has been curated since before Ange was appointed. It inspires some confidence, but I sense a lot of trepidation among those with the decision to make. Ultimately, you can do all the checks you want, but we all know it’s a throw of the dice.
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Musky? Not for me.
Rather have Deputy Dawg and Vince the Mole.
Although Micky Beale already has a mole as his assistant.
Is Jon Dahl Thomason in the running? At least he’ll speak out about Sevco’s finances 😁
A guy Des Buckingham in town,rumoured to be Maresca’s No 2
” You can do all the checks you want” ?
You mean like not bothering with ANY other Candidates, before offering someone the job in the shower?
Also, after The Eddie Howe episode, Celtic got very very lucky with Ange.
Lets hope the notion of rolling the dice is greatly outweighed by proper diligence !
The number 2 of a number 2?
Desmond Buckingham (born 7 February 1985) is an English professional football manager who is the current head coach of Indian Super League club Mumbai City, por cierto
Tom
Since when ?
I may have reported that the Spuds fans refer(red) to him as Carthorse Vickers. I hope they still do.
WillieGarner
Des Buckingham:
Managerial career
2004–2014 Oxford United (youth coach)
2015 Wellington Phoenix (assistant)
2016 Wellington Phoenix (interim)
2017 Wellington Phoenix
2017–2018 Stoke City U23 (assistant)
2018–2019 New Zealand U20
2018–2019 New Zealand (assistant)
2019–2020 New Zealand U23
2020–2021 Melbourne City (assistant)
2021– Mumbai City
por cierto
Hiring an EBTer would put the lid on a fine old week.
WurzelGummidge, ML9
Muscat Rangers “career” spanned a massive 22 games.
Kevin Muscat, £1million: Australian defender joined from Wolves in 2002 on free transfer. Joined Millwall in 2003.
maybe we should thank him, my part in rangers downfall and all that
We’ve tried the cowboys, might as well try the Indians..
There seems to be a concern about our Asian contingent now that ange has done a midnight on us, yet we had Naka for 4 year and he couldnae speak word of Scottish so had to use a translator which we paid for, and Davie Ki who we had for 2 seasons although he spent 4 years at John Paul College in Brisbane so at least he could converse with the staff so we didnae do too bad there.
My biggest concern would be our captain who must have grimaced when he watched the sand dancer with the hair band and ankle socks prancing around Wembley prior to our game, the same player that couldnae lace Calum’s boots when they were both on loan at Notts County and is now on at least 5 times plus his salary,
that women that manages england ladies, give her a chance next.
CAREFUL NOW
So if we get it wrong in the manager recruitment stakes, we messed up.
If we get it right, we got lucky.
WINNING GEMMELL
Fair play to you.
THE BLOGGER FORMERLY KNOWN AS GM on 7TH JUNE 2023 3:03 PM
The number 2 of a number 2?
It’s a case of putting 2 and 2 together.
No, that’s not what I said Tom.
Neil Lennon was wrong because the mess and failure could have been forseen……..but our glorious leaders choose to ignore this. So yes, in this case they messed up.
Indeed they got it right with Ange, but it was luck in my view.
They got it right with Brendan Rodgers and Martin O”Neil and that wasn’t luck. That was good judgement, and they deserve ( and recieved) credit for those Appointments. Clear now?
I do think speed of appointment is essential (are you listening dentist/GP ?) before the circus comes to town (generally led by a parade of clowns). As Ange seemed to have been in Rebuff Mode for some time it would be remiss of the Board not to have established contingency for (a) replacement, (b) protection of assets.
WG, ML2
Just catching up on yesterdays blog and seen this nonsense from P67
‘Who next?
Celtic thought they had the managerial recruitment game mastered when Brendan Rogers arrived in 2016. When they returned to the market in 2019, the rules had changed, there were no candidates of Rogers’ quality, indeed, there were no new candidates who inspired confidence they could succeed in bossing Glasgow’s unique challenges, a scenario Neil Lennon coped with.’
Still making excuses from the disastrous appointment of Lennon where P67 has continually assured us that there was no better qualified person on planet Earth than Neil Lennon to take over permanently from Rodgers.
That’s a brassneck of a comment and all because P67 would say anything to support his back mate Lawwell.
I also remember P67 saying that Celtic had a massive problem after Rodgers left because to manage Celtic after the success that Brendan achieved meant no top manager would want to follow in his footsteps.
So is this going to be the same scenario after Ange?
Big mate not back mate..spelling typo
Des Buckingham now 3/1…..starting to get worried!!!!
Neil Lennon was wrong because the mess and failure could have been forseen
————–
5 trophies at celtic in first spell.
comes back as a temporary appointment, closes out the 8th in a row league winning it with 3 games to go, then wins a cup final.
you have a winning manager delivering trophies, why would you seriously appoint someone else at that point ?
he then wins another treble in the covid interrupted season, without support at the end games.
winning 9 in a row as part of it.
who at that point was seriously saying replace the manager, there is better out there.
On what date did the appointment of NFL become a disaster ?
it is some forecast to say , see that appointment, him coming off the bus with the scottish cup to add to the league trophy, well see in a year and a half from now we will bitterly regret it.
using that logic right now, i can forecast that the next guy after ange will eventually end up shit.
if he doesnt win a treble and take us far in europe then whoever he is he is the wrong appointment.
that is how we benchmark success is it ?
the utter crap that continues in celtic cyber space about NFL,
well its a dearie dearie me.
is Buckingham not lined up for Palace ?
I suspected at the time, still do, that when NL accepted the caretaker role there was a caveat that if he completed the treble he would get the job full time, and that was his condition for taking the temp post.
Never believed DD would sanction a job in the circumstances described in showergate
TOM MCLAUGHLIN on 7TH JUNE 2023 2:32 PM
DENIABHOY
anyone else notice he ditched the jumper in favour of the shirt, tie and Jacket ?
Absolutely.
Also, he got rid of the cough towards the end of the season. He’s a wily old character is big Ange.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
And his Greek Australian accent flattened out after the league was won, more like a London accent I’d say. No? Just me then….
The alarm bells were ringing loud and clear for Lennon, when we got pumped home and away by Sparta Prague’s youth team,in September/October time…..Lawwell done nothing, and neither did Desmond
SS
You forgot to mention the absolute mess he left as he dragged out the door
SAINT STIVS on 7TH JUNE 2023 4:01 PM
On what date did the appointment of NFL become a disaster ?
*after we got pumped out of the Scottish in the semis by Ross County and had the audacity tae call John Park down fae the stand and point at the players on the pitch as if indicating they were all his fault
Saint Stivs
Lennon’s track record at other clubs proved that he wasn’t a talented enough manager to be at Celtic, and so it proved.
The season he became caretaker he inherited a squad far and away the best in the league.
The descent from there to when he left showed him out of his depth.
The sneaky way he was appointed by Lawwell showed that the board didn’t have great confidence in his ability either.
he has lost some weight and tidied himself up as well. trimmed his beard and went all london showbizzy, that sky interview i didnt even think it was him.
imposter.
still hurts, the loss of a tenth league title.
have to blame someone.
MCPHAIL BHOY on 7TH JUNE 2023 4:03 PM
TOM MCLAUGHLIN on 7TH JUNE 2023 2:32 PM
DENIABHOY
anyone else notice he ditched the jumper in favour of the shirt, tie and Jacket ?
Absolutely.
Also, he got rid of the cough towards the end of the season. He’s a wily old character is big Ange.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
And his Greek Australian accent flattened out after the league was won, more like a London accent I’d say. No? Just me then
————–
And he started talking about the weather while enjoying a cup of tea waiting for his Sunday Roast.
How did we all miss the unmistakable signs 👍
Just for CelticMac….
Here are some general aspects a club often considers when looking for a new manager:
Tactical Acumen: Celtic FC would benefit from a manager with strong tactical knowledge and the ability to adapt strategies based on the opposition. They need someone who can analyze matches effectively and make necessary changes during games.
Leadership and Communication: A new manager should possess strong leadership skills to motivate and inspire the players. Effective communication is crucial for building a cohesive team and maintaining good relationships with players, staff, and the club’s hierarchy.
Winning Mentality: Celtic FC is a club with a history of success, and fans expect their team to compete for trophies consistently. The new manager should have a winning mentality, set high standards, and instill a desire for success within the players.
Player Development: Celtic FC has a tradition of developing young talent. A manager who can nurture and improve players, both individually and collectively, would be valuable. Developing a clear pathway for youth players to progress into the first team is also important.
European Experience: Celtic FC often competes in European competitions, so a manager with experience in European football would be advantageous. Understanding different playing styles, managing rotations effectively, and making astute decisions in European games can greatly benefit the team.
Knowledge of Scottish Football: Familiarity with the Scottish Premiership and its unique challenges is important. Understanding the rivalries, the physical nature of the league, and the expectation of dominating domestically are key factors for success.
Man Management: Managing a squad with diverse personalities and handling the pressures associated with a high-profile club is crucial. A manager who can build strong relationships with players, manage egos, and handle the media effectively would be valuable for Celtic FC.
Going to send this to PL to help him narrow the field.
How long shall we give the new manager till there are calls for his head ?
presseason defeat in Japan tour ?
losing any games domestically ?
crashing out the league cup ?
first defeat at ibrox ?
getting pumped in europe again, same as for years and years ?
not playing in an angeball celtic way style ?
for many, neil lennons worst attribute was that he was not brendan rodgers.
ange came in and his best attribute to many was that he was not neil lennon, however that didnt mean universal support , he was getting hounded immediately from touching down at glasgow.
the poor next guy will be written off because he is not ange. or matching howe as he starts winning in europe.
funny lot, fitba supporters, reality doent count, it seems only names and emotions.
oh well.
it is going to be a long summer
At what point does the board not think ….wow we got really really lucky with Ange …let’s get proven and tested and put plooky to the sword ….not rookies !!!
FFS, Des Buckingham is going viral on Celtic SM.
Big Wavy, what have you started. ?
Greenpinata – Ridicule me all you want 😃 😂To be fair, at the time I thought he had ditched the jumper when he noted how smartly attired the new sevco manager was. All about standards.
The incessant cough in interviews was actually morse code for his agent. Go back and check it out. It was S.O.S, get me out of here.
The signs were there.