Celtic legend Scott Brown’s future at Aberdeen isn’t as certain as his contract would suggest, with a report in today’s Scottish Daily Mail [07/03 print edition, back page] indicating he is considering his position at the club.
Brown arrived at Pittodrie as part of a much-heralded new era under Stephen Glass. The player-coach signed a two-year deal with the idea of not yet giving up on his midfield career but also getting more involved on the training pitch.
That plan received a big blow when Glass was sacked last month, with Jim Goodwin arriving at the Dons to imprint his own style on the Aberdeen squad.
Celtic legend Scott Brown’s playing days could be numbered
We’ve previously discussed that Goodwin is happy to utilise the former Celtic captain in his team but that Brown may well end up getting fewer hands-on coaching opportunities. That came directly from Goodwin who admitted Brown may get frustrated.
Rumours of a rift have since surrounded his lack of an appearance at Ibrox over the weekend. Goodwin dismissed those in his post-match comments, blaming it on fatigue, and senior Aberdeen sources have told The Scottish Daily Mail there has been no falling out.
However, journalist Stephen McGowan also reports in the Mail that if a player-coach role comes up at a different club in the summer then Aberdeen are willing to work with Brown on a desirable outcome that suits both parties.
That suggests that at this stage of his career Brown values the coaching side of things more than the playing. We know he was eager to take his first steps into management at St Mirren, so the quadruple-treble winner could be hanging up his boots quite soon.
Many Celtic supporters are of course curious about what the future holds for Brown in the game. If he proves himself to be a talented coach or manager then it has obvious long-term implications for the Bhoys.
He can only do that with the right chance and if that isn’t presenting itself at Aberdeen then he’d be right to move on this summer.
As always, we’ll be rooting for him wherever he is.
In other news, “I was one of the ignorant ones”; John Hartson makes honest Ange Postecoglou Celtic admission.
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