FORMER Kilmarnock manager Jim Jefferies reckons Steve Clarke’s love of coaching could be a barrier to him becoming the next Scotland manager – but insists the Hampden power-brokers would be "crazy" not to approach him.
Clarke, who was named PFA Scotland manager of the year, has performed miracles at Rugby Park in the last 18 months, taking the Ayrshire outfit from relegation candidates to the cusp of Europa League football.
READ MORE:
St Mirren take battle to avoid play-off place down to the wireThat feat has understandably placed him firmly in the frame to succeed Alex McLeish in charge of the national side.
Allied with his success at Killie, Jefferies believes Clarke’s cv – working at Newcastle United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Aston Villa alongside luminaries like Jose Mourinho, Kenny Dalglish and Ruud Gullit – means he has all the credentials needed.
READ MORE:
Rangers boss Steven Gerrard faces English competition in battle for Oldham stopper George Edmundson“Steve has got to be in the frame. It would be crazy if he wasn’t. Even if it is the shortest of shortlists, he should be on it,” said Jefferies.
“But only he will know if it appeals. The Scotland job is not for everyone. It is wonderful recognition and a great privilege, I’m sure, but the problem will come if Stevie still feels like he wants the day-to-day involvement.
“He clearly loves working with players, improving them and making his mark on the training ground. It would be a really tough choice to leave that behind for a very different role with Scotland.
“And it’s an unforgiving job. At Kilmarnock he only has one set of supporters to please - and my goodness, he has done that. With Scotland he would have an entire nation to please, as well as all the club managers!
“But Stevie has the track record and the cv that any international side should be looking for and I would be amazed if they [Scottish FA] did not want to have a conversation with him.”
READ MORE:
Nottingham Forest legend Trevor Francis feels he owes RangersJefferies enjoyed a largely successful stint with Killie after arriving at the club in February 2002, significantly reducing the wage bill while guiding them to the 2007 League Cup final, where they were defeated 5-1 by Hibs.
The veteran gaffer was the longest-serving manager in the top-flight when he left Rugby Park in January 2010 and, although he acknowledges that the relationship had more than run its course, he is delighted to see the club flying high.
“You don’t have one of the bigger budgets in the league at Kilmarnock and it’s always a task to get players to go there and fulfil the ambitions there,” continued Jefferies. “I probably stayed a year too long but it’s a great club and I thoroughly enjoyed my time there.
“It’s brilliant to see them back up there after a few lean years. Steve thoroughly deserves the recognition he has received for getting them competing at the top end of the Premiership.
“He has great experience working at big clubs and alongside some of the very best managers in the world, and he has come in and totally revamped and revitalised that football club. The atmosphere seems completely different.
“He has brought together a good team, they are well disciplined, know their roles and, when the time is right, can play some really attractive football. They are up there on merit.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here