Kenny Shiels beats off illustrious rivals to take over as Kilmarnock manager

But Johnston is confident he will be fully vindicated for ignoring the eye-catching CVs which came his way in recent weeks and instead handing the role to Kenny Shiels on a permanent basis.

Shiels, who has been in interim charge since the SPL's Manager of the Year Mixu Paatelainen resigned to manage the Finnish national team at the end of March, has signed a one-year contract and will be assisted by former Cowdenbeath boss Jimmy Nicholl.

Although Kilmarnock failed to win any of the eight games they played under Shiels at the end of the season following Paatelainen's departure, Johnston insists he never harboured any doubts about the Ulsterman's credentials for the job.

Antonio Alvarez, who led Sevilla to Copa del Rey triumph in 2010, former Mexico player and coach Hugo Sanchez and Paco Ayesteran, assistant to Rafael Benitez at Liverpool when they lifted the Champions League in 2005, were among those whose names were put forward.

"There were plenty of names in the hat with fantastic experience abroad," said Johnston, "but I don't know how some of them would have adjusted to working at a club of this size, with the resources we have and a small backroom staff and no money for transfer fees. I don't know how guys who have worked in Spain would adjust to that. It would sound good, look good and maybe excite the fans to bring in a big name from overseas.

"There were a lot of Scottish applicants as well, you'll know the list off by heart. It was the same as last year, we had around 30 or 40 CVs put forward, some by agents and some by managers directly if they had my number.

"There were applicants from England and further afield. Some of them were attractive on paper but the world in which they have lived would be vastly different from the one we have here.

"I didn't go down that route, I didn't conduct interviews with anybody. But we took a bit of time to come to the decision that we should confirm Kenny in the role and I'm happy that we have done the right thing, especially with Jimmy Nicholl as his assistant. He brings with him the kind of experience from the playing side that Kenny doesn't have.

"Mixu had been a top player, with 70 caps for Finland, and to an extent Jimmy also brings that ability to identify with the players and command respect as a top professional in a way the players understand.

"Kenny knows the players, he gets on well with them and with the backroom staff. He is a very nice guy and I know he is a hard worker. I know he has the right type of style of play in mind. So there are no unknown factors with him. I'm sure he will do the job we want. We had a period at the end of the season where Kenny could show what he could do. That period was difficult for him, because we had injury and suspension problems, but I felt we had four creditable draws, while three of the four defeats were against the Old Firm.

"Kenny built a good relationship with the other members of the backroom staff, he is well grounded in sport science and takes a modern approach to training. We saw the benefits of that last season and while Mixu got the awards, a lot of it was down to Kenny."Shiels faces a significant rebuilding programme this summer, having lost Alexei Eremenko, Jamie Hamill, Frazer Wright, Craig Bryson and Mehdi Taouil since the end of the season. He completed the signing of striker Paul Heffernan from Sheffield Wednesday yesterday, adding to the earlier capture of midfielder Danny Racchi from York City. Defender Patrick Ada from Crewe and Dundee captain Gary Harkins could join them soon as Shiels continues to reinforce his squad.

Despite the loss of so many influential first-team men, he insists he can improve on last season's fifth-place SPL finish. "I can see us being stronger," said Shiels. "People might think we will be weakened because of the players who have left, but we will replace them and keep the same system of playing.

"There is no such thing as a ceiling for any club. There seems to be an acceptance in Scotland that Rangers and Celtic will fill the top two places every season. Aberdeen and Dundee United challenged that in the past and although I'm not saying we will, we can aspire to that challenge.

"We have become victims of last season's success, losing the players we have, but I can see nothing less than achieving the task of replacing them and making more progress, as well as working with the players we have and improving them which I think is one of my strengths. My ultimate goal is to take Kilmarnock into Europe, something I achieved with all the clubs I managed in Northern Ireland."

Johnston, meanwhile, defended himself against criticism from Kilmarnock supporters over the ticketing arrangements for the final game of last season which saw Rangers clinch the title at Rugby Park, with many travelling fans in designated home sections of the stadium.

"The game was the most lucrative we have had in recent years, netting us about 250,000," said Johnston. "It was an important financial event and puts us in a stronger position to strengthen the squad. It's important our supporters bear that in mind, although it was unfortunate it caused problems with crowd segregation. The whole purpose of being in the top six is to give us a better financial platform. We are in a stronger position now than we were 12 months ago.

"It doesn't mean we have cash to splash on transfer fees and we couldn't match the 4,000 a week Hearts are paying Mehdi Taouil, for example. But Kenny has fantastic contacts and we will work within our means to bring in new players."