Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has explained why he gives his time to youngster coaches after brilliant praise recently from James McPake and Marvin Bartley respectively.
The Greek-Australian has made a huge impact in Scottish football and has managed to win over the respect of the nation with his work at Parkhead.
So much so that rival managers and younger coaches have been lauding him in the media, particularly after meeting him. Former Dundee boss James McPake has already stated that he was left “humbled” after a chat with the Hoops boss recently. Livingston assistant coach Marvin Bartley, meanwhile, stated he felt like he was in “the presence of greatness” when speaking with the Celtic boss [ [Clyde 1 Superscoreboard].
But Ange has played down any such superlatives and simply stated the importance of interactions with senior figures when he was a younger boss.
As quoted by the Glasgow Times, Ange said: “It’s not a responsibility. I just remember when I was a young manager, if somebody who was more experienced than I or who I respected even said hello to me, I would take that with some encouragement that there was an acknowledgement there.
“I respect every manager because I know how tough it is to do this role, irrespective of what level you are doing it at. It’s tough, particularly in today’s world where there’s no patience, and James [McPake] is a great example. With James, people will look at it and say ‘well, things didn’t go well this year’, but you can’t dispute that he has had success at that football club. That will help him moving forward, and that’s where you’ve got to keep that perspective.
“You’re trying to have a career, and if you’re going to have a career then you’re going to have to take the knocks, dust yourself off and get going again. I thought James handled himself really well and he’s handled himself really well since then. He looks like he’s a guy who wants to have a career and he’s willing to learn from his experiences.”
Ange Postecoglou shows his class as he opens himself up to younger coaches
Brilliant stuff from the manager here. It shows exactly the kind of personality and humble nature he has that he gives his time to younger bosses and allows them to dip into his own experiences.
We all know how busy Ange is running Celtic these days. To make time to speak to younger coaches that offers no benefit for him is a classy, thoughtless act that deserves to be highlighted.
It’s no wonder the likes of McPake and Bartley have been left so wowed by him. So impressed with his demeanour and his class in showing so much consideration for them and their own respective roles.
Especially when you consider how this country reacted to Ange getting the job in the first place. He owes nobody anything. You could even understand if he held a major grudge over how he was received too. But even that isn’t evident in him these days. It’s not something he seems to even care about at all.
We all know how much class Ange carries himself with. It’s one of the key reasons he’s so adored by the Celtic support. He epitomises those values that we deem so important at this football club.
And the fact we have rival managers and coaches also talking him up? Well nothing shows you the kind of man he is more than that.
In other news, Dundee United appear to have received some big injury boosts before Celtic tie
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