By Vince Rugari
Ange Postecoglou insists he is in no rush to leave Celtic for the English Premier League, as Tim Cahill said the former Socceroos boss’ growing profile in Europe will enable him to sit back and wait for the perfect moment to make his next managerial move.
Postecoglou was linked to the recent vacancy at Brighton and Hove Albion, which has since been filled by Italian Roberto De Zerbi, while reports from England suggest he is now being monitored by Leicester City as they contemplate the future of Brendan Rodgers - one of Postecoglou’s predecessors at the Scottish champions.
After winning the double in his first season at Celtic and impressing with his fearless tactical approach in the UEFA Champions League, the 57-year-old is making waves across Europe and the UK, and seems a certainty to be roped into any speculation about future job opportunities that open up in the Premier League.
But speaking with the Herald and The Age during his quick visit home to promote Celtic’s involvement in the Sydney Super Cup later this year, Postecoglou gave no indication he was looking to shift from Glasgow any time soon.
“It’s not lost on me, but I don’t think it’s lost on people that I’m already at a massive football club,” he said.
“We play in front of 60,000, got opportunities to win trophies, we’re in the Champions League - it’s a massive club I’m already at. My ambitions are to bring as much success as I can to this football club, that’s what drives me, that’s exactly where I want to be.
“The football world changes constantly, and I think if you start thinking too far ahead or what the next step is, you miss out on what you’re doing.
“I’m loving where I’m at, I’m at a big football club - everything I’ve wanted to do is at my doorstep now. I also feel this great responsibility to bring as much success as I can to it.”
Cahill, who is also in the country to help mark the Socceroos’ centenary celebrations, described Postecoglou as a “visionary” coach with ambitions of working at a higher level than he already is.
“If there’s interest now, that means there’s interest later,” the former Everton star said.
“He’s someone that will probably have aspirations of coaching in one of the biggest leagues in the world. But at the same time, he likes to see out projects.
“There’s always going to be question marks asked about jumping to the next level, and it’s just about whether he feels ready to leave one of the biggest clubs in Scotland.
“You see with [Aston Villa manager] Steven Gerrard at Rangers, it’s sort of like a copy and paste - except Ange is on a different level when it comes to the way that he plays.
“That next step will be about making the right decision ... you look for longevity, and in football, there’s no guarantee and to reset up and go again, it’s going to be difficult, but a challenge that every coach, I suppose, looks to.”
Postecoglou’s trip to Sydney is his first time back in Australia since he joined Japanese club Yokohama F. Marinos a short time after quitting the Socceroos, having sealed qualification for Russia 2018.
He will bring Celtic with him to these shores in November, for friendlies against Sydney FC and Everton, while the Scottish Premiership, like all domestic competitions, breaks for the upcoming World Cup - and he’s well and truly feeling the love that has developed for him and his methods during what he joked was a “trial separation” between him and the Australian game.
“It’s been quite incredible - obviously accelerated in the last 12 months that I’ve been at Celtic. I’ve had a few friends and family come and visit me and try to tell me people are getting up in the middle of the night to watch Celtic play St Mirren or St Johnstone,” he said.
“It’s a good feeling. In my whole career, I’ve tried to get some credibility for myself, not because I’ve needed it but because I’ve always felt that means credibility for the game here in Australia. It’s great to think that we’re getting into that stage where coaches in our game are being seen as the same standard as the other codes.”
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