Who Will Be The Next Scotland Manager?
December 21, 2009 by Mike
Filed under Betting, Scottish Premier
John Collins, one of the most celebrated players in Scotland’s history is also one of the leading candidates to be offered the job. His playing days began at Hibernian, however, in 1990 he signed for Celtic where he won numerous honours. Six year later, he moved abroad, and signed for AS Monaco on a free transfer – there, he won the French Championship, before moving to England, where he signed for Everton, and then afterwards, Fulham. Many experts believe he is more than qualified to take the Scottish job due to his glittering International career – Collins played 58 times for country, and scored 12 goals, an exceptional record from midfield. He played in major tournaments such as Euro 96, the 1998 World Cup, and even scored in the latter, against Brazil. He retired in 1999. Collins has domestic managerial experience also, in 2006 he became the manager of Hibernian, where he won the Scottish League cup.
However, the Hibs players turned against him some weeks later, and criticised his tactics. In December 2007, he resigned from the role. His next managerial position came in 2008, at Belgian club Charleroi, despite rumours of jobs in England, with West Ham, and Fulham. After one only season, Collins departed Charleroi and is currently unemployed, fuelling speculation of a return to management with Scotland. His CV is impressive indeed, and the 7/1 odds being offered by Paddy Power (www.paddypower.com) could prove to be exceptional value for money – especially if Levein rules himself out of the job in the near future. The factor that works against Collins as a candidate for national manager is his lack of honours in domestic management – Levein has won trophies, and therefore the SFA may take this into close consideration.
