Celtic are close to appointing Paul Tisdale as the club’s new head of recruitment, and one of his former colleagues has given the move his full support.
Tisdale is said to be on the verge of filling the gap left by Mark Lawwell back in March, giving Celtic renewed focus on improving recruitment and scouting processes, data use, and coaching development.
Spurs legend Steve Perryman helped bring Tisdale to Exeter City for a 12-year stint that cemented his place as one of the best managers in the club’s history.
He worked alongside Tisdale as a director of football during that spell, so he knows better than anyone what the self-styled ‘football doctor’ can offer the Bhoys behind the scenes at Lennoxtown.
Perryman has cited the 51-year-old’s ability to develop relationships, scout quality players, and foster young talent as key strengths.
Paul Tisdale’s suitability for Celtic talked up
Speaking to The Daily Mail he said, “Paul is in the top three football people I have met for his intelligence. You meet people in football who have come from an education background and you think: ‘Yeah, but they haven’t played.’
“Then you see people from an education background who look at players and think: ‘They’re not thinkers, are they?’
“The hard part is getting the balance between the two, and ‘Tis’ was – and is – a very, very well-educated football person.
“So, in terms of his judgement in situations, such as recruitment, selection, dealing with the board and players, he is excellent.
“He just had great judgement. Judgement in the boardroom, judgement in a trial match where you have 30 or 40 players and you only need three to make up your squad.
“Judgement in football is critical. And ‘Tis’ has the brain to get the best out of whatever job he is doing and just doing things right. He is honest, he is honourable, he is likeable and he just does things right.”
Celtic need this appointment to pay off
Celtic has lacked stability in this type of role in recent years and could really do with this one paying for the club’s long-term benefit.
Lee Congerton, Nick Hammond and Mark Lawwell have all come and gone with much initial fanfare and then ultimately disappointing results.
Fans will be sceptical about Tisdale’s appointment as a result, but he should be judged on his own merits and given a fair shot at success.
Brendan Rodgers has a clear vision for the kind of player he wants to bring to Celtic. As a baseline, they need to be first-team-ready and have the potential to improve and become major assets for the club.
Better forward planning would also help to bring talents in earlier in windows to fully acclimatise them to the challenges at Celtic well before the club’s difficult early-season tests.
Tisdale has the tough task of ticking every box, but those are the demands of a job at a big, scrutinised club like Celtic.
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