Levein - Sacked

[peagreenboy]

So who will be in charge against Luxembourg? Houston, given his close working relationship with Levein, could resign.

 

The newsagent billboards up here in Dundee today featured, "Houston - I'll walk if Levein Does", so he's sure to be gone.

 

Good riddance. People like Charlie Adam shouldn't be blaming the media in this case. It's the fans that wanted Levein gone. And if the players want to blame anyone they can always look to themselves.

[kni]

Official confirmation from SFA with Billy Stark in charge for the Luxembourg game - http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/scottish_fa_news.cfm?page=2986&newsID=10909&newsCategoryID=1

 

The Scottish FA tonight announces that Craig Levein has been relieved of his duties as Scotland National Coach.

 

The Board of the Scottish FA has taken the decision primarily due to the disappointing results in the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 Qualifiers, which have culminated in Scotland being bottom of the group after four matches.

 

In arriving at this decision, the Board was cognisant of Craig’s stated intention – expressed to the President and Chief Executive - to leave the job at the end of the current FIFA World Cup campaign.

 

The Association stresses that it will honour Craig’s contract.

 

Stewart Regan, Scottish FA Chief Executive, said: “We are taking this decision with real sadness. Craig has worked hard to bring success, and has been thoroughly professional in his approach to the job. He has achieved a great deal with the team and in other areas, such as the Performance Strategy. However, he would be the first to agree that football is a results-driven business.

 

“For that reason we have relieved Craig of his duties with immediate effect.

 

“Billy Stark will take interim charge of the team for the friendly against Luxembourg. There will be a short delay in announcing that squad, which Billy will select, and we have informed the Luxembourg FA of this development.

 

“We will shortly announce an interim replacement for the Under-21 squad ahead of their match against Portugal next week.

 

“After the Luxembourg match, the Board will meet to begin the process of identifying and recruiting the next National Coach to take us forward. We will give ourselves time, given our fixture schedule, to find the right person for the job.

 

“The challenge for the squad now is to improve our position in Group A and, subsequently, improve our position in the FIFA rankings. We also must begin preparations for the UEFA European Championships in France in 2016, which for the first time will have 24 qualification places available.”

[Jaggernaut]

He got us to the playoff's. Who's got us that far in qualification since?

Nobody

 

A lot of his losses were in friendlies. He had to play friendlies to try out new players, since Brown had left a team of 30+ guys. He lost three competitive games; Germany, Lithuania and Norway.

 

People are quick to berate Bertie because he is foreign. There is no doubt we were in 10 times a better state when he left, than when he started.

 

Nobody, that's for sure. He was also responsible for taking us to our lowest ever world ranking, and it could be argued that we are still suffering from that.

I don't buy the whole "it's because he's a foreigner" view. Craig Levein is a Fifer fae Fife. He's also getting what he deserves, i.e., das Boot.

[Duck snort]

Invite applications. Let's see who wants the job, rather than restrict ourselves to 3 or 4 guys.

 

Exactly. It shouldn't be restricted to a Scot either. The only proviso if it's a foreigner is that they should speak excellent English, unlike Vogts or Capello.

[lady-isobel-barnett]

100%

 

I really think that the fans of all clubs should step up the pressure on Regan to resign.

 

I still can't believe he kept his job after the Sevco debacle in the summer

I wonder if getting Regan out the door would be costly re compensation. If that's the case, after forking out £700K on Levein, his job is now more secure than ever.

[Diego]

Don't want him going anywhere but it's far too early for him anyway. Far too inexperienced.

I'm not sure I entirely buy the "inexperienced" line. I completely understand why people would be worried, but Klinsmann and van Basten did well at Germany and Netherlands with less experience than Jackie has. If it's good enough for some of the best nations in the world, why isn't it for Scotland?

 

I do think Scotland needs some fresh thinking, rather than some of the past-it dinosaurs whose names have been thrown about.

Edited November 5, 2012 by Diego

[kni]

Exactly. It shouldn't be restricted to a Scot either. The only proviso if it's a foreigner is that they should speak excellent English, unlike Vogts or Capello.

 

How about Luiz Felipe Scolari if his English is up to scratch?

 

Frank Rijkaard is managing Saudi Arabia and it's unlikely that we could afford him.

Edited November 5, 2012 by kni

[ian_mac]

I wonder if getting Regan out the door would be costly re compensation. If that's the case, after forking out £700K on Levein, his job is now more secure than ever.

 

Fair point. Sickening, but fair point nonetheless.

[kni]

I wonder if getting Regan out the door would be costly re compensation. If that's the case, after forking out £700K on Levein, his job is now more secure than ever.

 

It's unlikely that we can afford substantial compensation for a manager who is currently employed. The options will be limited by available funds.

[G SUS]

Nobody, that's for sure. He was also responsible for taking us to our lowest ever world ranking, and it could be argued that we are still suffering from that.

I don't buy the whole "it's because he's a foreigner" view. Craig Levein is a Fifer fae Fife. He's also getting what he deserves, i.e., das Boot.

 

I'd disagree with us "still suffering from that". The effects of our low rankings disappeared around 2009(5 year coefficients). We suffered a lot more from the lack of friendlies played by Smith/McLeish/Burley which meant we weren't picking up ranking points. Levein and Vogts, while ultimately failing, actually played the games. They've picked the wrong one's at time(France and Brazil as prime examples).

 

People don't seem to want a foreign manager because of Bertie, yet are clamouring for a Scottish one despite the fact the last two have been atrocious.

[twinny]

I'm quite glad the SFA took their time over this (I mean the weeks since the Wales/Belgium double header, not the two years odd that he's been unpopular). Decisions in football are often too reactionary. I feel we need to give a manager time for bedding in using the Euro qualification then work hard at world cup qualifiers. Levein made his mistakes in the Euro qualifiers, then proved he hadn't learned his lessons come the WC qualifiers, so it was time to go.

 

As for who comes next, I agree that we shouldn't rule out foreign managers, though I wouldn't want an English manager as England tends to look at our game as irrelevant and unimportant (it probably is but that's not the point). Vogts had a good record considering he had the worst, least experienced squad of any of our managers, probably ever (recently McLeish, Smith, Burley and Levein all had squads with numerous premier league players available).

 

Strachan has to be favourite, but I would like us to invite applications. There may be a decent foreign name who's out of work that we just hadn't considered.

[G SUS]

 

Strachan has to be favourite, but I would like us to invite applications. There may be a decent foreign name who's out of work that we just hadn't considered.

 

Vahid Halihodzic

[kni]

Dare I mention that Steve Kean is available?

[twinny]

Vahid Halihodzic

 

That's the type of person I'm talking about (whoever he is). Wikipedia tells me he's managing Algeria. There are tons of similar guys with national team experience.

[G SUS]

That's the type of person I'm talking about (whoever he is). Wikipedia tells me he's managing Algeria. There are tons of similar guys with national team experience.

 

Had a decent record with PSG, took over Ivory Coast and went 2 years unbeaten, cruised to a championship with Dinamo Zagreb after that before taking over at Algeria and has currently got them to their highest ever world ranking (24)

[Mr Bunny]

I'm not sure I entirely buy the "inexperienced" line. I completely understand why people would be worried, but Klinsmann and van Basten did well at Germany and Netherlands with less experience than Jackie has. If it's good enough for some of the best nations in the world, why isn't it for Scotland?

 

 

These worked because they were big name players - huge names in fact not just in their country but in world football. They were able thus to command instant respect and get the players playing the way they wanted. I don't think we've had a player like that since Dalglish - though his time has come and gone.

 

Strachan would be the closest to that kind of player we've got now (Played for Ferguson's Aberdeen, Man U and Leeds when in the top flight) though I think he could possibly be divisive.

 

But basically we don't have that kind of player - anyone who comes in has to have a decent track record as manager, though obviously we won't get anyone who's been successful at the very top level, and have the full backing of the SFA (remember, Geo. Peat and his cronies who cut the legs from Burley when he was in charge).

Edited November 5, 2012 by Mr Bunny

[Diego]

These worked because they were big name players - huge names in fact not just in their country but in world football. They were able thus to command instant respect and get the players playing the way they wanted. I don't think we've had a player like that since Dalglish - though his time has come and gone.

 

Strachan would be the closest to that kind of player we've got now (Played for Ferguson's Aberdeen, Man U and Leeds when in the top flight) though I think he could possibly be divisive.

Fair point. Though Jackie can always play the "I know what it takes to qualify for major tournaments" card.

 

As for a Strachan type, I think someone of that ilk is indeed far too divisive. I fear that so many of the names that have been thrown up would be turned on by the press and fans following a bad result. That's one of the reasons I'm advocating a different approach this time around. A foreign option would be another way of achieving that.

 

This is a prime time to take on the Scotland job. You've got six competitive games that aren't really that important, followed by a qualifying campaign where just shy of half the teams make it to the finals. Do that and the last fourteen years mean that you'll be fondly remembered no matter what follows.

[chunky jag]

Someone probably wheels this out every time an appointment is made for Scotland, but I believe this to be the most important appointment the SFA will ever have made - the next manager, if properly appointed, should have a fantastic chance of taking us to Euro 2014 considering it's a 24 team tournament, surely, SURELY, we are included in the top 24 of Europe's teams.

 

If it's a dodgy appointment, I fear our national team might get stuck languishing in the lower tier's of the seedings forever.

 

Strachan, for me, is too divisive as someone else mentioned. Too similar to Levein in terms of smart arse with the media, people would turn on him too quickly. I don't think players like him that much either with his "wee man" complex.

 

I know people would reject them, and fair enough, because they both left for other jobs, but if we're serious about turning this around, it has to be McLeish or Smith again for me, preferably Smith.

 

Lambie left us in the lurch, we took him back because he was best man for the job at the time, he turned us around. I am confident Watty could do the same. No room for sentiment in football, even national team level.

Edited November 5, 2012 by chunky jag

[G SUS]

 

I know people would reject them, and fair enough, because they both left for other jobs, but if we're serious about turning this around, it has to be McLeish or Smith again for me, preferably Smith.

 

Lambie left us in the lurch, we took him back because he was best man for the job at the time, he turned us around. I am confident Watty could do the same. No room for sentiment in football, even national team level.

 

Why do you champion Smith? Some of his era was absolutely diabolical. For every France result there was a Belarus. For every Norway there was a Ukraine.

[Gary Peebles Tackle]

Owen Coyle spotted at Hampden... ;-)

[Willjag]

I wonder if getting Regan out the door would be costly re compensation. If that's the case, after forking out £700K on Levein, his job is now more secure than ever.

But they are only honouring Levein's contract till the 2014 campaign ends (Just over a year to go?) The longer they go without naming a Manager, the more money they'll save.

 

Billy Stark seems to be doing quite a good job with the U21's. In with a shout perhaps?

[Watson Towers]

Why do you champion Smith? Some of his era was absolutely diabolical. For every France result there was a Belarus. For every Norway there was a Ukraine.

 

eh, and for every Ukraine there was... a Ukraine. Yeh, we lost to them over there, but that 3-1 game at Hampden was one of the greats. Remember, they had got to the last 8 of the WC the year before, and were a cracking side.

[Watson Towers]

Owen Coyle spotted at Hampden... ;-)

 

testing out the spitoons, hopefully, rather than being interviewed for a job. Big-eared gobby wee keech...

[G SUS]

eh, and for every Ukraine there was... a Ukraine. Yeh, we lost to them over there, but that 3-1 game at Hampden was one of the greats. Remember, they had got to the last 8 of the WC the year before, and were a cracking side.

 

The second Ukraine was an Alex McLeish game.

[Dick Dastardly]

Am I allowed to say that I think Joe Jordan could handle it (I'll take my coat)

 

I said this before Levine was appointed, but I'd like to see Darren Ferguson as fulltime boss with his dad as a part time assistant. Darren can do the donkey work, with Sir Alex to come in for the matches.