Former Premier League manager admits he turned down Celtic job

The Celtic managerial job is one of the most interesting in world football. The pressure will be there to win almost every game. But those who succeed can look forward to plenty of silverware and major opportunities. Just look at Ange Postecoglou, who went from struggling to get a chance in Europe to Tottenham Hotspur head coach within the space of two years.

Of course, there are some who have turned down the chance to manage Celtic. In recent years, Eddie Howe is one example most fans would be aware of.

Back in 2009, Owen Coyle was a manager on the rise. And following the departure of Gordon Strachan, he was offered the chance to manage Celtic.

Coyle ended up turning it down. Now, he has explained why he did so. As reported by The Scottish Sun, he told BBC Sportsound:

"I turned the Celtic job down in 2009. People don't realise that.

"I was the Burnley manager and Gordon Strachan had just resigned from Celtic and I obviously was doing fantastic with Burnley, I took them to the Premier League, and was offered the job.

"I've got to say my initial reaction was to say yes I want to take the job.

"And what I actually had to do was to take the emotion out of the decision because my kids were a lot younger at that time.

"As a family we sat down and spoke about it with my wife and discussed whether we wanted to bring the kids back into that environment with the age they were at.

"Had they been a little bit older we probably would of.

"But I was in the best league in the world, playing against the Chelsea's and Manchester United's every week.

"And ultimately that's why I made the decision not to.

"I think then Tony Mowbray was appointed subsequently after that."

Former Premier League manager admits he turned down Celtic job

Of course, Coyle made the decision keeping his family in mind and everybody can respect that. In terms of a career move, it might have been a mistake though.

Coyle was the manager of Burnley back then but his time at the club would come to an end soon. He left to become Bolton Wanderers boss, a move that understandably did not go down well amongst the fans of his previous team.

Since then, Coyle has had a bit of a journeyman career in management. He has roles in England at Wigan Athletic and Blackburn Rovers, in Scotland at Queen's Park and Ross County, and in the United States with Houston Dynamo.

Coyle currently finds himself managing in India, where he is in his second stint as Chennaiyin FC manager. One can only wonder though how differently his career might have turned out if he had taken the Celtic job back in 2009.