Ange Postecoglou to Celtic question directly addressed by Australian contact

Celtic’s manager search is almost a week in.

Dermot Desmond is searching for a permanent candidate after Brendan Rodgers’ shock resignation which shocked players and fans alike.

Rodgers’ departure was expected to come at the end of the season, but Desmond’s scathing statement released shortly later revealed that his in-house relationships had reached a point of no return.

This paved the way for Martin O’Neill to make a sensational Hoops return, and he got off to a winning start with a 4-0 thrashing of Falkirk on Wednesday.

But with the club’s plans to replace Rodgers permanently still unknown, one Australian coach has given an update on Ange Postecoglou’s status.

It’s been a turbulent year for Postecoglou, who sealed a historic Europa League win for Tottenham in Bilbao in May.

But after being sacked by Spurs at the end of the season, his move to Nottingham Forest was nothing short of a disaster.

READ MORE: Shaun Maloney Celtic manager theory floated as insider discusses Martin O’Neill succession plan

This left him available when Rodgers departed Glasgow. He was instantly seen as the favourite for the role, having seen immense success in his two years at Celtic Park.

MORE CELTIC STORIES

Former Australia Rugby Union manager Eddie Jones is close with Postecoglou, and addressed his links to Celtic in an interview with the Daily Mail.

Jones said: “The expectation to win is so high. When you don’t win, the media come hard. The biggest story in rugby is the England head coach being under pressure. Everyone wants to hear about it and everyone has an opinion.

“It’s the same in New Zealand, where you get all the conjecture around Scott Robertson not being as successful as he’d like.

“It’s like being a Premier League coach. My mate Ange Postecoglou at Nottingham Forest got cut after 39 days. We keep in contact. I saw the rumour about him going to Celtic, but I don’t know whether he’d go back there.

“Having experienced the Premier League, he’d like to stay in that area. Who knows. We’re quite similar blokes in a lot of ways. Out of Australia but not out of the mainstream of Australia.

“He’s Greek-Australian and I’m Japanese-Australian. We’ve had to battle to get to where we are, both coached our national team and left to try and make a name for ourselves overseas.

“Both of us in some ways have been able to do that. We’re both quite driven about the way we want to play the game and you get criticised for it.”

Postecoglou was replaced by Sean Dyche, making his Forest spell one of the shortest in Premier League history.

Ange Postecoglou’s spell at Celtic

Postecoglou came to Celtic from Yokohama F. Marinos as a complete unknown in Europe.

After months of talks, Eddie Howe rejected the Hoops’ offer, triggering a last-minute scramble which ended in the appointment of the Australian.

Taking over a Celtic team which had just finished 25 points behind Rangers, he instantly reclaimed the title against the odds, turning heads with his bold football and signings from Japan.

His second season saw a domestic treble, but just as abruptly as things got underway, they ended. An offer to join Tottenham proved too good to turn down, and paved the way for Rodgers’ return.

Click here to read article