CELTIC boss Ange Postecoglou attended the Scottish Youth Cup final between the U18s and their Rangers counterparts at Hampden on Wednesday night with Peter Lawwell, Michael Nicholson and Chris McKay. 

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou
3rd May 2023; Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland: Scottish FA Youth Cup Final, Rangers versus Celtic; Celtic chairman Peter Lawwell , Celtic manger Angelos Postecoglou and CEO Michael Nicholson applaud as the youth sides enter the field of play

The manager was “delighted” with what he saw at Hampden. The Bhoys emerged as 65 winners after extra time, and Postecoglou was full of praise for players, noting he was particularly impressed with the attacking show, with some great goals scored by the Bhoys.

Like Postecoglou, fans enjoyed the match, with many choosing to tune into the Scottish Youth Cup final rather than the Man City v West Ham or the Liverpool v Fulham matches, something that’s quite telling.

Ange Postecoglou said: [Celtic TV]

“I was delighted to watch the boys the other night; it was a cracking game. For both teams, I thought it was a really good exhibition of attacking football. There would be plenty who would moan at the fact there weren’t a lot of outstanding defensive displays but I didn’t mind it. If every football game finished like that I don’t there’d be too many complaints from people.

“It was great to see Stuart McLaren, who has come here in the last year and has done a tremendous job with the boys. There’s a really strong alignment between him and Darren O’Dea and Stephen McManus at the next level. There are a lot of the boys who go up to the B team and head back down, the way they do with us.

“I think it is important. If you look at the most successful football clubs around the world that have great development programmes, there’s an alignment there. But it has to be an alignment that everyone believes in and more importantly that the club believes in. It can’t be about a person coming in and saying. ‘This is the way we’ve got to play.’ It’s got to be a natural extension of what the club stands for. For as long as I’ve known this club, it’s always been synonymous with playing exciting football. Long may it continue!”

Postecoglou’s attacking philosophy is going right through the club, with all ranks wanting to use a high press, attacking system. It’s bringing the results in, while it’s making it easier for players to make the step up to the next level.

The players will have received an extra boost knowing that Ange Postecoglou was in the stands watching down.

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