‘Brilliant’ – John McGinn gives verdict on rumoured Celtic managerial target

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 06: John McGinn of Aston Villa during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Arsenal at Villa Park on February 6, 2021 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images)
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 06: John McGinn of Aston Villa during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Arsenal at Villa Park on February 6, 2021 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images)

It is no secret that Celtic are expected to bring in a new manager in the summer after Neil Lennon stepped down from his role in the middle of a disappointing campaign, leaving John Kennedy in interim charge. And unless results and performances don’t improve drastically over the next few months, it is unlikely that he will be offered the job on a permanent basis.

A wide range of names have been linked with the Parkhead job over the past several months. This has included the likes of Rafa Benitez, Eddie Howe, Frank Lampard, Chris Wilder, Roy Keane; just to name a few.

While most of those being linked with the club are free-agents, current Scotland national manager Steve Clarke has also been mentioned as a possible candidate.

Clarke has done a brilliant job with the national team, securing qualification to the EUROs, their first major tournament since the 1998 World Cup. And John McGinn appears to be a big fan of the manager. While speaking with the Go Radio Football Show and as reported by the Daily Record, he said:

"“First and foremost, I’m not surprised he’s been connected and linked with the job.“He’s a brilliant manager and says it how it is. He’s obviously been with the top clubs across England and up here.“He did a brilliant job with Kilmarnock and as a team it was probably slow initially as to how we had set up under him, but the more and more we got used to how it worked and the style of play it certainly has benefitted us going forward.”"

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It is unlikely that Clarke will end up at Celtic in the summer

Clarke is set to manage the Scotland national team at the EUROs and thus, it is very unlikely that he will end up at Parkhead in the summer. And to be honest, there are doubts whether his style will be suited to that of Celtic.

While the Hoops are expected to play attacking and exciting football at all times, Clarke’s teams are built on a solid defence and they squeeze out results. That is not surprising since he worked as an assistant manager under Jose Mourinho at Chelsea, who used the style to great effect.

It is certainly effective, as the results have shown throughout the course of his career. But is it the right fit for Celtic? Most probably not.