Ange Postecoglou has admitted that Celtic Football Club is under the construction of a “major rebuild” currently. The Greek-Aussie so far has endured a tumultuous period in his tenure as boss, with heavy-duty refurbishment needed at Celtic Park after nearly a decade of dominance.
With so many comings-and-goings at Paradise over the course of the summer just past, it’s no wonder Ange is begining to feel the enormity of the job that sits before him. No less than twelve players were brought into the Club, with many leaving in an unprecedented playing staff turnover. It’s hardly any wonder that our season has been quite stop-start considering the scale of the task.
Postecoglou said at today’s Mainstream Media Conference: “We are working together to put up the pillars. We have some immediate concerns obviously and that’s around the football department and looking into January.
“Considering that Ange plays a particular type of football, which requires an inordinate amount of work, it is no surprise to see that the manager is planning forward to post-Christmas when the January transfer window opens. A continual blight of Celtic has been injuries for some time now, meaning additions are crucial to achieving success this season.
Ange insists that he has the full support of the Celtic Board and is happy to work with interim CEO Michael Nicholson. He said: “If I keep getting that support, I’m really confident we will bring in the right kind of players in January that we will need to bolster the squad and then we will have a good foundation for what’s ahead.”
“There is no doubt this has been a major rebuild. That’s not just just an opinion – that’s a fact. To bring in 12 players in one window, that pretty much signifies that you building something completely new.
“Despite the outward projection that relieving Dom McKay after 72 days in the job presents, Ange is sure he and the new interim CEO can work well as a duo. He added: “The relationship is working well. It helps that Michael has been here. I already knew Michael. He was one of the first people I kind of met in the whole process of being appointed. He was involved in a lot of our transfer dealings anyway.
“I’m of a similar sort of mould. I want to build something that’s not just a success but a sustainable success and get into more strategic thinking.
“So I have already had an established relationship, which made it easier in terms of the transition. He understands, because he has been here, the job that’s ahead of us, short, medium and long term. We are very much working together to put the pillars in place that we need to.
“We have some immediate concerns obviously, that’s around the football department and looking ahead to January.
“But we want to build something, not just for immediate success, but for sustainable success. So you have to get into more strategic thinking and I am working alongside Michael hand in hand with that,” the Celtic manager said.
“To be fair the club has been really supportive of what I believe that we need and very supportive of the direction I want us to take,” Ange said. “As a manager that’s all you can ask for, that the organisation, not just Michael, is really supportive of the direction that I want to take the club, in all facets, in terms of the kind of football I want to play, the kind of team I want us to be, and the kind of players I want to bring here. From my perspective, that’s the key thing.”
“It’s good to hear that Ange feels he has the support of the new CEO. However, it’s safe to that if their is no major restructure or change in strategy at the Club, then Celtic fans will rightly shrug their shoulders with a feeling of insouciance towards another accountant clone taking the reigns as Director of Football.
Postecoglou and Nicholson are also looking to further supplement the backroom staff, after bringing in Anton McElhone to lead the sports science department last month.
“We brought in Anton in terms of our sports science and he has been brilliant since he came in, not just with what he is able to input, but also helping the existing staff because we have been a man or two short in that area,” the Celtic boss said.
“There are other areas we are looking to bolster particularly in terms of scouting and recruitment. It’s not about replacing people and it’s certainly not about me bringing people in I have worked with in the past.
“I have always tried to bring in the best people possible, irrespective of their backgrounds or whether I have worked with them or not, because when you go down that track, you are limiting yourself. We will cast the net far and wide, we will get the best people in. We need to bring in more people to bolster the existing structure.”
Watch Ange Postecoglou’s Mainstream Media Conference below…
Paul Gillespie
Let’s face it Ange himself is organising this rebuild himself from top to bottom. Basically he’s doing the boards job as well as his own. Lucky to have him.