Alex Jones 
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Former Celtic player and pundit Chris Sutton has commended the bravery of Ange Postecoglou for taking on the Celtic job in difficult circumstances.
Following confirmation of a breakdown in talks with top target Eddie Howe, Sutton also accused the former Celtic target of suffering from ‘stage fright’ over the then-vacant Parkhead post.
The club openly confirmed the climbdown from their one-time top target and swiftly turned their attention to Greek-Australian tactician Ange Postecoglou, who was appointed on Thursday morning.
Famed for an expansive and attacking-minded style of play, Sutton was under no illusions that Postecoglou has his work cut out for him as he discussed the immediate pressures he will be under.
Writing in his column for the Daily Record, Sutton explained:
“But what I would say is fair play to Postecoglou.
“I admire the guy for being brave enough to take this job. For having the balls to up sticks and come to Scotland when the likes of Eddie Howe got stage fright and ran away, leaving Celtic high and dry in the process.
“People talk about Celtic taking a punt on this manager.
“But what about him? He’s been waiting for his opportunity to get a job in Europe and he’s landed a huge one.
“Because, make no mistake, Postecoglou has a monumental job on his hands. He’s up against it right from the start.
“Celtic have no director of football and no head of recruitment. There are two chief executives listed on the statement announcing Postecoglou’s arrival.
“There is a squad that’s surrendered the league title to Rangers last season which could be weakened even further with Odsonne Edouard and Kris Ajer likely to be on their way.
“Postecoglou will need to hit the ground running as he’s going to be under huge scrutiny right from the off. Whether it’s right or wrong, the pressure will be on him immediately.”
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Coming into the Parkhead position with no European experience on his CV, Postecolgou is something of a left-field appointment.
Having delivered some success with the J-League title to his name at Yokohama F. Marinos, and the 2015 Asian Cup with the Australia men’s national team, Postecoglou has shown he can win silverware.
Whether his abilities can translate directly over to Celtic is another matter – though Sutton is right to commend Postecoglou for taking up such an opportunity.
