As we get to the end of Week 2 following the announcement that Ronny Deila was to be replaced at the end of the season, the picture is starting to become a little clearer.
Amidst the press speculation is one story that stands out, that sounds as if it’s got a glimmer of truth, and is focussed on a coincidence too funky to actually be one.
Paul Lambert has announced he’s leaving Blackburn, at the end of the season.
He would have been one of the candidates for the Celtic job come what may; this announcement increases the speculation that he will be.
There’s a fantastic confluence of events here that makes me wonder if this is just random chance or something else.
To announce his departure is one thing, but he’s sticking it out until the final ball has been kicked, much as Ronny is, and he says he knew how that would be spun.
He had his answer on hand, but that answer wasn’t a flat out denial.
And that makes me think there’s something in this.
I listened to his comments carefully.
He said all the right things, the things you say if you don’t want to screw up your current club or rock the boat at your next one. Respect for the Blackburn fans and team, respect for Ronny Deila, letting Celtic focus on wrapping up the title … it was note perfect, and I thought “this guy is a class act.”
We always knew that, of course.
The issue is, has he been approached by Celtic?
I think it’s more than possible.
He’s the kind of strong personality the club needs, but where the concerns lie is in whether or not he’s got the requisite experience, of the good kind, that we need.
Yet he has won things; his work with Wycombe, Colchester and Norwich was excellent.
All those clubs were sad to see him go.
Where things were less good was when he took the opportunity to go to Aston Villa, which must have seemed like a step up from Norwich but, actually, looked him into a death battle that had already sucked the life out of Martin O’Neill, who got three sixth place finishes before leaving with the club really struggling, and then Alex McLeish, who I would argue is the best Rangers manager I’ve seen in 30 years.
The Villa job has been a death sentence for years.
Seven managers have sat in the dugout there since 2010.
Not one of them has coped with the incredible – and unrealistic – expectations of a support who’ve failed to realise the best is behind them. The club is in freefall at the moment, which makes notions of David Moyes going there hilarious.
Yesterday I was going to publish a series of pieces about the criteria for our new boss. Events at the courts, and last night’s Glasgow Cup Final, swung me onto another track but one of the criteria would have been that the new boss is a natural leader and no-one can deny Lambert is that. As a captain, he was an inspiration on the field. Those same qualities have led to him being a respected manager, and that ticks a very important box.
Does he tick all of them? Difficult to say.
We don’t know the circumstances at Blackburn, but he’s going voluntarily, invoking a clause in his contract.
He’s not being turfed out the door there, which gives him a leg up on all the sacked managers in the English leagues at the moment.
Let me put it this way; he’s not my first choice, or even my second one.
He’s in the Has Possibilities pile rather than those that would generate real excitement.
I wouldn’t be dancing around the block as I would with Moyes or Rodgers, but nor would I consider it a slap in the face appointment as I would that of someone like Stubbs or Coyle, and yes, Pearson.
Let’s see where this one goes.