In looking at the names being banded about, the one thing that the majority of the managers linked don’t have is managerial honours.
We don’t need inexperienced rookies, nor do we need up-and-coming managers deemed to be the next big thing in management or coaching.
What we need is a someone with a proven track record of winning games and trophies, along with developing a style of play that gets the fans on board – and is tactically skilled when it’s needed during matches.
Out of all the names linked only Muscat, Clement, Knutsen, and Marcelo Gallardo have a winner’s record in management.
Lampard seems to be the front runner, but are the board looking at this from a football perspective or a commercial one? If they are looking at it from the latter, with the hope that the football will come good, then I am sorry they shouldn’t be involved in this process – as we could be back in this position next year again!!
We need an appointment which will stabilise the club, someone who will be able to implement their ideas across the whole of the football structure, and someone who will be here long term.
From the four ‘winners’ listed above it would seem that only Muscat has been carefully considered, again he would be a cheap option in terms of compensation if he were to agree to come over but with only handful of games left could it be the case he will want to see the season out before joining – if offered the job? Muscat has delivered a league title in Australia and Japan — sound familiar to anyone? However he failed in his one previous venture into Europe, managing Belgium league side Sint-Truiden, so it’s not all Gold for the man from Oz.
Personally the other three interest me more, yes they might not know a great deal of Scottish football – but then again did Ange before he arrived?
They all have a good CV in producing silverware, and Marcelo Gallardo managed in a football-mad city before hand when managing River Plate – however whether or not he would want to move to Scotland is one thing, and the other issue is that he’s not fluent in English which might prove problematic in trying to implement ideas. His managerial winner’s role from River Plate and Nacional is impressive – as is his trophy haul from his playing days. He also likes to play attractive attacking football, which is something the fans want to see alongside a successful team. This could be a very exciting appointment if the board have the balls and vision to do so.
Kjetil Knutsen has also an okay CV, winning the Norwegian league twice since taking over in 2018, plus he’s got a good eye for young players who can be developed and then sold for good profit – which is excellent considering this is meant to be our business model. In his mid-50s, he’s in his prime for being a coach/manager – but having been a coach in Norway would this be too big a challenge? Suppose only time would tell on this.
Finally there is Philippe Clement, who’s a successful coach in his homeland of Belgium. He won three league titles in a row, with two different clubs from 2018-2019 up to 2020-2021. In January 2022 he moved to Monaco, however his golden touch didn’t translate in the French league, and after a season & a half he was sacked in the summer of 2023. So he won three league titles and a cup as a manager, all in Belgium but didn’t travel well.
All four have their pros and cons if they were to be appointed, but it seems that the smart money is on Lampard coming in – which I would assume means Jody Morris and Paul Clement joining him on his staff – with Morris having a good knowledge of Scottish Football from his time up here.
I don’t think Lampard is the answer to our issues at the moment but if he is appointed I’ll be getting right behind him to see what he can achieve with the players that got Beale the sack and technically Gio too.