Another day, another figure either bad-mouthing or disparaging Scottish football.

This time it is Arthur Numan who, in the distilled words of the tabloids, is urging Celtic's Virgil van Dijk to get out of the Scottish game for the good of his own career.

"Over the last two years he [Van Dijk] has proved too good for Scottish football," said Numan. "You can stay here too long. If he gets the chance Virgil should go to England."

The irony of these words coming from Numan himself will not be lost on many. He stayed in Scottish football for a period of five years, when at the top of his game, though there was one crucial difference.

In Numan's time here, the game was rich enough to help ease afflicted footballers through such travails as boredom or "diddy team" syndrome. Or put it another way: Scottish football was reckless enough in the past to accommodate the Arthur Numans of this world.

I'm not having a go at Numan here - he was a very fine Rangers player and an extremely courteous man to deal with. But the period in which he played in Scotland, with borrowed money seemingly in limitless supply, was when the seeds of destruction were being sown.

In that period, for instance, Rangers once went through a three-year trading cycle in which they suffered losses amounting to £90 million.

Never mind the largesse being lavished at Rangers. Aberdeen, Hibs, Hearts and others - even Kilmarnock - tossed sober housekeeping to the winds in order to attract talents major and minor.

A symbol of this mad period will remain the day Rangers signed Tore Andre Flo for £12m from Chelsea. I was at the Ibrox press conference that day and, while there were raised eyebrows and maybe just a hint of unease in the air, few of us really took stock of the imminent destruction coming to the Scottish game.

Looking back, it is astonishing to recognise the degree of self-harming Scottish football committed - and not just at Rangers. These were heady and exciting times, but with a terrible price looming.

Today, when I hear the likes of Arthur Numan getting off about the poor state of Scottish football, and how the likes of Virgil van Dijk must make good their escape, I take it all with a pinch of jaundice.

To an extent we are here today because of what went on back then. You could argue, indeed, that Scottish football would not be so diminished today had the Numans of this world not rolled up to be paid their outrageous wages of 15 years ago.

Scottish football lived beyond its means, as Sir David Murray and others chased their dreams. Few complained back then about the imminent damage to come. It was so good, so exciting, that no-one wanted to be a killjoy.

So where are we now? Well, in a pretty drab place, according to Numan. It's not very exciting, he thinks. It's small-fry. It lacks the oomph and panache that there was back in his day.

Actually, the more I've thought about it, the more content I am that Scottish football is playing and trading at its current level.

This is more authentic. This is the period of penance, or correction, or whatever you want to call it.

Today Scottish football is nearer that of the Scandinavian countries than it is to England or Germany, in terms of its elevated status and box office. And that's fine. If this is nearer to being its true self as our national game, then let's all crack on with it and enjoy it.

It can't all be about Celtic and Rangers. It seems to me fans of Aberdeen, Dundee, Dundee United, St Johnstone and others have fair enjoyed their recent times in football. Ask these supporters, and there's not a lot to be bemoaned.

Personally, I carry with me fond memories of the boom times of the 1990s around Rangers and Celtic. What a joy-ride it was to be around the Glasgow football scene back then.

But it was also ominous and destructive - ask any Rangers supporter now. I'll happily take today's version of Scottish football, thanks very much.