Neil McCann U-turn as he takes Dundee manager's job

Neil McCann will be the new Dundee manager on a full-time basis. Picture: Alan Harvey/SNS

The Sky Sports pundit took over as interim boss at Dens Park in April after the sacking of Paul Hartley and guided the club to safety in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

Wins against Motherwell and Kilmarnock followed by a 1-1 draw with Ross County proved enough to keep Dundee in the top flight.

But he rejected the offer of the job on a permanent basis and said he was returning to his TV role. However, he changed his mind and will now be the Dens Park boss full-time

A club statement last night read: “Dundee Football Club is delighted to announce that Neil McCann has been appointed manager of the club.”

Managing Director John Nelms stated, “We’ve had discussions with a number of candidates but Neil has been our number one choice since taking over as interim manager at the split. We were inundated with applications for the position over the past few weeks; however, the attributes Neil demonstrated are consistent with the qualities required to lead Dundee Football Club. We are looking forward to success in the upcoming seasons with Neil at the helm.”

McCann added: “After completing my spell as interim manager I returned to Sky Sports fully committed to fulfilling my duties and continuing my career in broadcasting. In the past few days however I have had time to think about the opportunity of being manager of Dundee FC full time and decided it was too good for me to turn down. I’m looking forward to being in charge for the new season and work has already begun on a number of fronts. I’m excited about the future and can’t wait to get started.”

Dundee had made an approach to St Mirren to speak to their manager Jack Ross but the Paisley club rejected the move and Ross issued a statement emphasising his commitment to rebuilding the Championship club.