JOHN HUGHES is Scotland's top manager for turning Inverness Caledonian Thistle into a replica of Celtic, at a fraction of the cost.
That glowing endorsement came yesterday from a man who used to patrol the technical area that Hughes now calls his own and is all too aware of how tough the job really is.
Charlie Christie may be a club legend for what he did on the pitch at Inverness, but his 17 months as manager between 2006 and 2007 gave him real insight.
Gordon Strachan, the Scotland manager, will announce the four nominees in the running for the PFAScotland manager of the year 2015 award at Hampden today. Hughes had been a contender for the shortlist even before he took Inverness to the Scottish Cup final.
Christie feels that Hughes should take the top prize, even if Inverness do not win their first major trophy at Hampden in May.
"I love what John has done to this club's style of football," declared Christie, who is now head of youth development at Inverness. "The football we play is very similar to Celtic, and I admire what Ronny Deila has done there this season, and what Derek McInnes has done to Aberdeen by making them such an attacking side.
"But John has done that at our club on a fraction of the budget that the others have. Traditionally, Caley Thistle have one of the smallest wages bills in the top flight.
"In my day, it was hard to attract players to Inverness but the club has done really well in the last few seasons to increase salaries so that the players are rewarded for their commitment, but we not able to offer big money.
"When I was manager, I wanted to Caley Thistle to play like Gordon Strachan's Celtic at the time, who passed and moved the ball so well. But I ended up having to play the long-ball game just to get results because we didn't have the players that were comfortable on the ball.
"John has come here and truly changed the style that we play from the previous manager. That is not easy to do. I would have enjoyed playing for his team because passing football suited a midfielder like me.
"But where the real difference is, is [with] our defenders. We always play out from the back now. When players like Gary Warren and Josh Meekings came here, there were used to knocking it long - but they don't now.
"The way John has changed the game here can maybe be done by managers in the English Premier League with players who earn £70,000 a week, but to get a bunch of guys on our salaries working so hard, is credit to his work.
"For us to be playing this brand of football, and to be on the brink of qualifying for Europe and the Scottish Cup final, is such an achievement."
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