There certainly isn’t any rush for Celtic to appoint a new manager.
It’s a case of the Hoops going through the motions until Rangers get their inevitable champions’ coronation. That’s what they’ve been doing for the last few months anyway, so no change there.
And, such is the extent of the clear-out needed at Parkhead in the summer, there isn’t much to be gained by giving a new boss a head-start in the dying embers of a wretched campaign.
Better to have absolutely no association whatsoever with this reputation-tainting season.
What does require a bit more urgency, however, is the man with odds as short as 6/4 with one bookmaker to be Neil Lennon’s successor ruling himself out of the running.
The toast of the nation
Steve Clarke is a national hero, whose place in Tartan Army folklore is secure after ending the finals drought that stretched back over two decades.
But his Scotland team have a World Cup qualifying campaign that starts next month, with no Europa League safety net to catch our fall this time.
A fast start in the end of March triple-header is required and speculation that Clarke would be open to persuasion to get back into club football with Celtic could undermine that.
St Johnstone boss Callum Davidson says his former team-mate Neil Lennon will come back stronger after quitting Celtic following a difficult season at Parkhead. pic.twitter.com/jxywpKXLv7
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) February 24, 2021
Put it this way, if he hasn’t poured cold water on the possibility and remains short odds in the betting by the time of his next squad announcement, there will only be one topic which dominates his media duties.
My guess is there’s nothing for Scotland fans to worry about here.
A combination of the mess at Celtic Park and the incentive of a Euro 2020 group that his team has a realistic chance of getting out of will be enough to banish any temptations to do a Walter Smith or a Julen Lopetegui.
An ‘it’s not for me’ in the next few days wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world, though.
