Rab Douglas: James McPake and Stephen Glass both need a win but pressure is greater on Dundee boss

It’s hard to say which manager is more in need of a win at Dens Park on Saturday – James McPake or Stephen Glass.

Both are in charge of teams struggling for form and results but, if I had to choose one, I’d probably go for James.

Aberdeen are a big club with big ambitions but the side at the bottom of the league is usually the one with more pressure.

The match has been put back to an evening kick-off to see if they can tap into the US viewing market.

That sort of thinking is to be welcomed.

But folk watching are unlikely to be served up a thriller.

A boring 1-0 win would suit both managers perfectly.

Mind you, if any game has 0-0 or 1-1 written all over it, it’s this one.

I see that Kevin McDonald has been training with Dundee.

Whether he ends up signing, or is even interested in a return to Dens, time will tell.

Yes, central midfield isn’t an area of the team that jumps out as needing strengthened.

And you can also point to the Graham Dorrans signing that became more of a problem than a solution.

But if James believes he’s better than what he’s already got, that’s all the reason he needs to offer Kevin a deal.

That’s a judgment call and the sort of decision a manager gets paid to make.

I can understand why some people have mixed emotions about Scotland’s World Cup hopes.

You can’t ignore the fact that we played poorly in the first half of both our matches in the recent double-header.

Nor can you ignore the issues we have up front (with the notable exception of Lyndon Dykes, who has done exactly what was required).

SCOTLAND LEAD 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Dykes claiming it but Scotland won't care as they lead late on v Faroe Islands

📺 Watch on Sky Sports Main Event pic.twitter.com/k5VqV7xNwQ

— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) October 12, 2021

But so many other countries would swap positions with us right now.

You can’t exaggerate how important a winning mentality is. And how hard it is to create.

Scotland have got that and so much credit is due to Steve Clarke for it.

We’re strong favourites to make the play-offs.

Yes, we might need a bit of luck in the draw.

But you can get too far ahead of yourself.

I remember for the Euro play-off final, everybody thought we’d be facing Norway and Erling Haaland but they were knocked out by Serbia, which worked to our advantage.

It’s not a case of my glass being half-full rather than half-empty just now. It’s three-quarters full!

It’s another manager of the month award for the gaffer, and another thoroughly deserved one.

Thirty-six of them he says!

I get asked all the time about what makes Dick Campbell such a great boss and there’s a lot that goes into it.

But the biggest thing is probably the control he has of a dressing room of players.

The best way to put is – they love him but they’re still scared of him.

Scottish Championship Glen’s Manager of the Month

This morning our Manager, Dick Campbell was announced as the SPFL Scottish Championship Glen's Vodka Manager of the Month for September 2021.

His 8th Manager of the Month whilst in charge of the Lichtieshttps://t.co/nnjFo9JUZj pic.twitter.com/dxTyv7l9n1

— Arbroath FC (@ArbroathFC) October 12, 2021

The hairdryer probably comes out less than when I first started playing for him at Forfar but he’ll still use it when he needs to.

Football means as much to him as it ever did and he’s turned Arbroath into a lot of people’s second team.

From my own point of view, he’s great at delegating and that’s part of his man-management skills.

There will be a lot of full-time football clubs thinking ‘if only’ we had someone like that in charge.