Former Celtic striker Chris Sutton has not held back with his views on Dundee after the club sacked James McPake and replaced him with Mark McGhee.
The Dens Park side arrive at Celtic Park on Sunday after a dramatic week off the pitch.
Despite picking up victories against Hearts and Peterhead, the Dees decided to say goodbye to McPake and replace him with a close ally of former Celtic boss Gordon Strachan, who is a technical director on Tayside.
Sutton is surprised by it all and indeed has been very critical of Sunday’s opponents, telling BT Scottish Football Extra: “It’s really odd, isn’t it. Does it feel right, Mark McGhee, Gordon’s mate, going in? In recent times he’s been to Barnet and Eastbourne Borough, has he really paid close attention to Scottish football, does it matter?
“Well, maybe this season it does. Because Dundee are in a relegation battle. Just the timing of the sacking, they beat Hearts away and had a decent win at Peterhead, I feel for James McPake, what an odd time to sack him.
“And then the six game ban Mark McGhee has to sit out, you cannot tell me that is ideal for Dundee. There’s what, 12 games left and he’s going to have to sit out half of them. It’s a very strange appointment. Jobs for the boys, isn’t it?”
I think a lot of people are thinking similar things to Sutton here. Not only is it strange to give up on McPake at this stage of the season, but McGhee also doesn’t seem like a brilliant candidate.
That touchline ban mentioned is part of it too. He won’t be in the dugout on Sunday when his team visit Ange Postecoglou’s Bhoys.
Listen, it might give them new energy in the tail-end of the season and we shouldn’t get too cocky ahead of this weekend’s match, but it’s a decision that is going to be scrutinised a lot over the next few months.
In other news, Report: Boli Bolingoli could be days away from Celtic exit.
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