Scotland could land elite-level manager with World Cup bronze on CV - but SFA require big brass
SFA chiefs must push boat out for top manager who is interested in speaking to them
Imagine an elite-level manager with links to Scotland and 125 international matches on his CV, including a third place finish at the World Cup and two European Championships quarter-finals, was on the short-list to replace Steve Clarke.
Throw in a Nations League title and one semi-final as well. Too good to be true? It probably is.
Nobody doubts the veracity of these details. Roberto Martinez, currently leading the bookies’ odds for next Scotland manager, has done all the above and more with Belgium and Portugal, two countries whose expectations greatly exceed Scotland's.
He also spent seven consecutive seasons in the Premier League with Wigan Athletic, where he achieved the unthinkable by winning the FA Cup, and Everton, with whom he finished fifth in his first season.
His experience and what Scotland currently need seem to be an ideal fit. Crucially, The Scotsman understands that the 53-year-old, whose wife Beth is Scottish, would be willing to speak to the Scottish Football Association.
However, the possibility of him succeeding Clarke, whatever the betting indicates, seems remote unless the SFA decide to become much more competitive in the job market. Those in power at the governing body need to be realistic. Top men require big brass. Martinez, who stepped down as Portugal manager ten days ago, reportedly earned around £3.5million from the Portuguese Football Federation.
Of course, nothing is guaranteed. You only need to ask England. They went for a voguish, foreign candidate in Thomas Tuchel, handing him a reported salary of over £5 million. The English FA then extended his contract – and presumably upped the terms – weeks before the World Cup and expected to reap dividends by taking the great leap forward and winning a major final. All they’ve had in return so far is more of the same.
Time is of the essence. The World Cup is almost over. Candidates to replace Clarke are already moving on or else are locked into jobs elsewhere. The SFA risk creating the impression that they are sitting in a room on Hampden’s sixth floor counting income from the World Cup – estimated to be between £8-10 million – while letting potential recruits drift by.
Moyes feels fanciful at the present time
Another of those cast among the front runners will be in a dug out in Scotland as soon as this weekend. David Moyes is due at Dens Park as Everton end their short stint at St Andrews with a game against Dundee. A story circulated earlier this week that the odds of Moyes taking over Scotland had been slashed from 6-1 to 2-1 but given he has a year of his contract still to run at Hill Dickinson Stadium, this feels fanciful even if he is Scottish and has ambitions to take over Scotland at some point in the future.
But again, why would Moyes undervalue himself? He signed a deal worth around £12 million when he returned to Everton last year. A reasonable estimate is that Clarke was on around £650,000 per annum plus bonuses. Michael O’Neill, a one-time Scotland target, earns more with Northern Ireland.
Fabio Cannavaro, appointed Uzbekistan manager before the World Cup, is on a reported £2.5 million a year – £1.25 million for each goal his side scored in the USA and Mexico.
Such figures reflect the responsibility that comes with being a national head coach or manager - and the almost inevitable need to cope with heavy public criticism.
The success of the national team is the gateway to rebuilding Scottish football. Mike Mulraney spelled this out in no uncertain terms during the giddy days counting down to the World Cup. The president was his inimitable self in the aftermath of the SFA's agm in May. It proved an easier assignment than is often the case. Murmurs of satisfaction from members greeted Mulraney's announcement that the Pitching In initiative, a joint campaign between the SFA and the Scottish Football Partnership Trust, had reset its ambitions. The initial target was to raise £50 million by 2030 to invest in pitches and training facilities to help increase participation at grassroots level. With this sum already raised, the new target had been upped to £100 million.
“We have to make hay while the sun shines,” Mulraney explained. Investment is indeed key - when the sun is shining and even when it isn’t, which is a bit how it feels just now following another failed attempt at reaching the knockout stage of a World Cup.
SFA chiefs need to earn their corn
Manager-less and facing a Nations League campaign that isn’t setting pulses racing quite yet, Scotland need reignited. Broke and hungover, the Tartan Army are in desperate need of a pep pill.
Never mind stacking up bales following a productive harvest, Scotland are in danger of falling into a slurry pit ahead of games against Slovenia (twice), Switzerland and North Macedonia in little more than ten weeks’ time. The prospect of a double whammy in the form of England becoming world champions has at least been extinguished.
What can the SFA offer in response? It will be interesting to find out. A top-level manager to replace Clarke would help. In fact, it’s non-negotiable. It’s incumbent on the governing body to build on the strides already taken. Theirs is a heavy responsibility following Clarke’s decision to walk away weeks after signing a new four-year deal. Mulraney and chief executive Ian Maxwell are alert to the value they got from Clarke, who as well as being the highest paid Scotland manager to date was awarded considerable qualification bonuses on top.
Now Mulraney and Maxwell need to earn their corn. No previous SFA office bearers have been charged with replacing someone with three major final qualifications to their name. No disrespect to the outstanding Falkirk manager, but they can’t replace Clarke with John McGlynn.
Nor can they do what their predecessors did when Andy Roxburgh announced he was stepping down and turn to someone already within the association. There is no Craig Brown on standby in the current set-up. SFA mainstays like Under-21 coach Scot Gemmill won’t cut it. It’s not yet clear what’s happening with Clarke’s assistants.
Steven Naismith is set to continue working under Craig Mulholland, the new SFA chief football officer. Meanwhile Alan Irvine, now 68 and having not managed for over ten years, knows his time has come and gone although he and goalkeeper coach Chris Woods are understood to be on hand to help in the short term if required. A new manager will likely want his own team – which means more cost.
Surely for Scotland to excel on the world stage, recruiting someone with experience at this level is required. It might be forgotten that just over a year ago, weeks before the tragic death of forward Diogo Jota, Martinez led Portugal to the Nations League title against Spain, who could be days away from becoming world champions having narrowly beaten their neighbours en route to the final.
Like Ange Postecoglou, who was also linked with the Scotland post, Martinez is in the top bracket of coaches, whatever some critics say. The former Celtic manager always seemed the longest of long shots: he didn’t break into the bountiful world of the Premier League in England to return to Scotland. The riches of the Middle East, where he has teamed up with Ronaldo at Saudi club Al-Nassr, was a logical next step.
Martinez, whose two daughters are half Scottish, has deeper ties with Scotland. There is a potential readymade assistant in Shaun Maloney, his one-time No. 2 at Belgium. Austin MacPhee, set-piece coach at Portugal, might be persuaded to return to the Scotland set-up.
Whatever happens in the near future, the SFA might have to prise open the coffers a lot further. As Barclays, the title sponsor of Hampden, would advise: never spend money before you have it.
But now the SFA have it, or at least a bit more of it, they may need to rethink the salary ceiling for a head coach or manager capable of driving Scotland forward.
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