Oxford United boss Karl Robinson has praised former Celtic captain Scott Brown for his start to management after going up against his Fleetwood side.
After departing Celtic last summer and spending just one more season as a player in 2021/22, Brown made the early move into management earlier this year.
The 37-year-old was appointed as the new boss of English League One side Fleetwood Town as he aims to guide them out of the third tier of English football.
And the former Celtic number eight has made a decent start to life in the dugout, with Fleetwood sitting in 15th place on 21 points, just 6 points out from the play-off spots.
Scott Brown’s latest match-up came against Oxford United on the road on Tuesday evening as they were held to a 1-1 draw.
Despite the result likely coming as a frustration to a serial winner like Brown, his opposition boss was full of praise for his side and the start he has made to management.
United manager Karl Robinson, who has also spent time at clubs such as MK Dons and Charlton Athletic, is likely to know Brown very well after admitting that Celtic were one of the clubs he supported.
Speaking to the press after his match-up in the dugout with the Bhoys icon, Robinson was impressed with how he has started off life as a manager as he discussed his credentials. The 42-year-old also stated that he believes Brown will one day want to make his way back to Parkhead for the manager’s position.
He said [Oxford Mail]: “I’m a football fan, and Celtic is one of my teams, Liverpool and Celtic are the two teams I supported as a kid.
“What he did for Celtic is unrivalled, as a player and as a captain. His leadership qualities are certainly going to fall over into management.
“I’ve seen a lot of players who have come out of playing into management, and maybe there’s a bit of flippancy to the attention to detail and the amount of hours you have to put in.
“I know one or two players there, and they certainly speak about that not being the case. His desire to be successful as a manager is second to none.
“He’ll obviously have the same type of resolute strength in his personality to cope with the demands of management.
“I’m sure there’s hopes one day of going back to Celtic, like Steven Gerrard at Liverpool. I’ve been very impressed by how well they are coached, and sometimes, as a manager, you see that a little bit more.
“You see consistencies through three or four games, you see consistencies with repeated rotations, and repeated ways of defending in certain aspects of the football pitch, and a collective organisation from top to bottom, and you see that in all areas of their game.”
Important years ahead for Scott Brown as he looks to establish himself as a manager.
If there was one player at Parkhead, every supporter expected to become a football manager one day, I think the majority would answer Scott Brown.
As captain of the club, Brown became an icon on the park for his performances and his leadership abilities, which he was always going to transition into the dugout with.
I am sure the vast majority would love to see the former Celtic skipper return to Parkhead one day as manager. But, before we can all think about that, Brown has an important few years ahead of him.
As a young manager, the next few seasons will be absolutely crucial in establishing himself in the dugout, which I am sure is his aim at Fleetwood Town.
Personally, I am very interested to see the direction his managerial career heads in, and hopefully, if the circumstances are correct, that leads back to Celtic.
However, there is a lot of work to be done before that is even brought into consideration.
In other news, The important returning positive that arose from Celtic’s Madrid disappointment.
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