Gordon Strachan: Peter and Me

One of the hardest things to achieve in any business is a secure sense of fiscal responsibility whilst maintaining a position of strength amongst your competitors. Gordon Strachan and Peter Lawwell have managed this with great aplomb, especially when a provincial league such as the SPL fails to generate sufficient income for its members.

What WGS and the SSM have achieved in the last two years is nothing short of miraculous, to achieve a level of consistency and refresh almost an entire squad in a two year period is almost unthinkable. The squad that MON could elect from in his third season was full of players who had been at the Club since the previous incumbent, with players like Larsson, Petrov, Myalby and MacNamara already benchmarks in the squad.

What Strachan has achieved in this 2-year period could not have been realised without the sound financial governance of Brian Quinn, and more importantly the deal brokering skills, negotiation techniques and market savvy of Peter Lawwell.

Lawwell has made a great contribution to the Club, from the off the field benefits of the Nakamura signing to the Nike deal that not only affords us £5million (minimum) a year but also means that Celtic Jerseys are on sale in every major City in the world!

WGS looks to the future and hopes that he can build up a comparable relationship with his new captain, whoever that may be. Speaking of the importance of a Manager-Captain pairing he said "As a relationship, it's up there with the one between manager and chairman. The chairman runs the club and sets the standards and, if there are any difficulties between chairman and manager, you have a big problem.

"Last year, I wanted to sign a player, but Peter said no. That makes you think and it's better that than letting a manager go haywire and get the club into financial trouble.

"He was proved right. Well played, Peter. As a team, we've worked well. Because of the success of the lads, in terms of winning things and progressing in the Champions League, we have the finance to do more than Peter might have done two years ago as well."

With the entire summer to think about whom will be his new dressing room enforcer Strachan has a shortlist. "There are two or three who could become captain, but it needs a lot of thought. You need someone who can work close to you, understand you and will then back you up, in the dressing room and on the pitch.

"If you ask any captain who has worked for me, they get close to me. They've got to trust my perception of how football should be played, how the dressing room should be run and how the club should be run.

"Being vocal is not a huge part of being a captain. You can be reasonably quiet but, when you say something, it means something because it's intelligent and well worth listening to. I used to know players at Coventry who would shout and scream in the dressing room then, when they got on the pitch, they were silent."

The manager, however, states that tonight’s skipper will not necessarily be given the job for the season.

He said: "This game is not even a game. It's just 45 minutes' work because I will be changing the team round completely.

"While Lennon’s armband has not been taken on a full-time basis, Donati has snatched his number 18 jersey. Strachan, however, insists Hoops fans will see an entirely different footballer from the Northern Irishman when the ex-AC Milan ace makes his debut tonight.

Strachan said: "He looks for the forward pass, he's strong and he's got good athletic ability. ìI don't want him to play a defensive role. I want him to be a midfield player.

"He's got Neil's jersey but he's different. He wasn't £3 million, either, but I'm not saying what he did cost. Gary Caldwell has been hobbling around Celtic's Swiss HQ with a protective brace on his foot after bruising it badly towards the end of the season. Paul Hartley won't be involved in the Uhren Cup either after being left behind in Glasgow."

Strachan, back fighting fit after a hip operation at the end of last term, explained: "Paul has worked non-stop for the past couple of years and his mind and body need a rest, so he has the week off."

Talk of ‘team three’ also has Strachan waxing lyrical in his own inimitable style, with many hoping to see a more fluid style of play more in tune with Celtics legendary elan. He said: "Everyone wants to see an improvement in our side and we want to get better, but what we've done is deliver winning football.

"We'll try to entertain at the same time but, if we can't, we have to win. I think we could have played better last season, so were looking for more variation in the play, but we have to keep winning.

"You keep telling me some fans are not happy, but everyone I meet is happy.

"It's like when the Prime Minister makes a decision. Everyone is happy with it, but two per cent have an argument and some MP we’ve never heard of from Stoke-on-Trent fancies becoming a star and gets on the telly to talk about it.

"Everyone I speak to is happy winning trophies and knows I want to get better everywhere."

Reflecting on last term, Strachan said "Now and then, I look back and regret we didn't win the Champions League game with AC Milan, but it's not a big thing.

"I say we got our Treble last year because I'd pick the last 16 of the Champions League ahead of winning the League Cup.

"As for this term, the priority is to win the league. I've absolutely no interest in Europe right now."

A clearly focused Strachan must be a thorn in any opposition manager’s side, and long may that continue!

Yours in Celtic

Clydebuilt