Former Celtic striker Brian McClair has admitted why he believed that Ange Postecoglou would be a success in Glasgow.
He reckoned that if the former Australia boss was good enough to be recruited by the City Group, then there was nothing to be worried about.
McClair admits that he was left impressed that this was the type of candidate which his former side went for after he had been a success in the J-League.
The 59-year-old is still a regular attendee at Celtic Park as a season ticket holder and has a vast knowledge of the game having been in different coaching capacities at Manchester United and Scotland.
“Postecoglou has done really well, but I was always quite confident he’d be successful,” said McClair as quoted by the [Scottish Sun].
“I’d done my research and he was working in Japan for a team owned by the same people as Manchester City.
“Now, they seem to know what they’re playing at in terms of recruitment of coaches.
“They must have thought he was good, so I was confident he’d be the one to do what they needed to do at the club.
“The difficult part for him was there was so much dilly-dangling over Eddie Howe, his team missed a lot of pre-season, which was important to get his message across.
“He started off playing catch-up in terms of recruitment, and his early results reflected in that.
“But you could see what he was trying.
“That first season Celtic had a load of hamstring injuries, which are fatigue injuries really.
“He had the players working so hard and he wasn’t changing it because he knew it would be successful.
“After then you can see how the situation has improved and he’s got a team playing how he wants them to play.
“It’s been very entertaining to watch, and it’s no surprise to me that his players all work hard.”
Postecoglou’s side are very well drilled and know exactly what to do in any situation.
It did take some players a while to get up to speed but as McClair says the crux of Postecoglou’s football was evident to see from the offset.
“You only have to look at a player like Daizen Maeda, he never stops.
“It’s a work ethic, a team spirit and a desire to be sacrificial for the team.
“They’re playing some great football this season and he’s got a pretty strong squad, which is great to see, there’s a lot of competition there.”
Players also know that opportunities will eventually be presented and it is up to them to take them.
The Hoops have already retained the League Cup and also look as thought they have the league title in the bag as they currently sit nine points clear at the top of the table.
They will face Rangers next month in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup at Hampden and will be hoping to book their place in the final.
