It seems people are resigned to the fact Jens Berthel Askou should be the next Celtic manager, but should we not be aiming higher?
Eric Knott 
(Photo by Alan Harvey/SNS Group via Getty Images)
On Monday, I did an article on the appearance of Jens Berthel Askou at Ibrox with his agent last Sunday for the visit of Celtic.
In it, I asked if was a coincidence he was there, or whether he was there to view the team he’s going to manage in the future.
I also did a poll at the the end of the article to see if fans would like him to be the next Celtic manager.
He’s not my personal preference.
I’m one of those people who believes that Celtic should be the best version of itself that it can be.
In order to achieve that, we should be aiming for the best available managerial candidates out there.
Do we honestly believe that Berthel Askou is the best available candidate out there?
Well, according to the poll I did, that’s exactly what the majority of Celtic fans believe.
68% of fans who voted in that poll believe he’s the next man for the Celtic job.
As I said, he’s not my personal choice, but it would appear he is everyone else’s.
Look, I get that he’s done a fantastic job at Motherwell, and I agree that they will have a big say in the destination of this season’s title.
But is this really the best we can do?
I personally think that a big part of this is the fact that the Celtic board have completely lowered our expectations for Celtic.
In both transfer and managerial expectations.
And this is a dangerous trap for us to fall into.
It reeks of apathetic complacency, and a sort of subconscious mindset that suddenly, this is the kind of managerial market Celtic should be shopping in.
Can anybody tell me the last time Celtic recruited a manager from a fellow Scottish Premiership side?
And don’t say Neil Lennon, because he had already been sacked by Hibernian, and he wasn’t recruited to manage the club on permanent basis.
He was only supposed to come in until a new manager was found.
The less said about the outcome of that particular endeavour, the better.
As for Berthel Askou, some people seem to be having delusions of grandeur when it comes to the trajectory of his managerial career.
Ross McCormack was quoted yesterday as saying that if Celtic don’t snap Berthel Askou up for next season, a club from the EPL will:
I think he turns it down. I think he goes bigger than that. I’ll have a wee bet with you, I bet he goes to the Premier League before he goes to Celtic.
I think the fact that Celtic haven’t got it done now, they are losing out on him. He doesn’t care about this league. He’s going to get an offer from the Premier League and be like everybody else and just leave.
I didn’t see a queue of clubs from the EPL forming to snatch Stuart McCall back in 2013 when he guided Motherwell to second in the Scottish Premier League.
Yes, I get that Berthel Askou is a young and upcoming manager, but I sincerely doubt a side from the EPL would take a gamble on a manager who has less than a season in the Scottish Premiership.
Yet, the mindset being instilled in everyone is that he’s the best candidate for Celtic.
Is he?
Really?
Maybe I’m completely wrong here?
Maybe Jens Berthel Askou would be a fantastic manager for Celtic?
I just believe there are better candidates out there.
People laugh at me when I suggest that Roberto Martinez is the perfect candidate for the job.
I’m told we just couldn’t afford a manager like him.
Couldn’t we?
Really?
We have £77 million sitting in the bank, and we couldn’t afford to pay a manager like Martinez?
The board has gotten to everyone.
Their small mindedness has now transferred itself to the fanbase, and because they’ve made mediocrity the norm, the fanbase is starting to accept mediocrity.
Jens Berthel Askou might not be mediocre, but nor should he be the top candidate for the Celtic job.
He seems to be fast becoming that.
And that will play right into the board’s hand.
He is the cheapest option out there, I guess.
We know that cheap and this board go hand in hand.
So I won’t be shocked if he is the next Celtic manager.
I don’t think anybody will be.
Key Takeaways
- The article discusses Jens Berthel Askou’s appearance at Ibrox and speculates on his potential as Celtic’s next manager.
- A poll reveals 68% of fans support Askou, despite the author’s concerns about settling for mediocrity.
- The author questions the Celtic board’s lowered expectations in management and transfer strategies.
- He doubts that Askou is the best candidate available, despite his success at Motherwell.
- The article argues that aiming for better managerial options, like Roberto Martinez, is essential for Celtic’s future.
Bhoycie 
Billy McNeil from Aberdeen and Big Jock from Hibernian?
I meant of late. In the 21st century.
Eric,
You still haven’t answered my question on Celtic bloggers accepting hospitality while calling for boycotts?
I did answer it in a blog at the time. The site is fully searchable and you should be able locate it easily. If you want a more critical view on it, there are two very well written articles on it on Celtic365 as well.
Maloney is getting the job
I wouldn’t go for Martinez. He didn’t do much with the best Belgian squad, probably, ever, and was shocking at Everton.
I’d sooner someone with a brilliant track record or up and coming than a manager who has had chances and not really performed particularly well.
Out of those two, I’d sooner the Motherwell boss, but I also think it will be Maloney.
Eric,
I read the 365 article which I thought was very good.i must have missed your response but I will have a look.
This sort of thing makes the collective effort much harder.
A very poor show all round.i never viewed Dykes blog much but I certainly will never go near it now.
I do however think it would have been worthy of an article from any of the TT but nope.
Little secret, but don’t tell anyone, Joe is 365, and part of the TT…
Askou won’t be the best out there, but there is no way the best or better out there would come to Celtic right now. Have you not noticed the whole club is a mess right now? People talk of a big rebuild in the summer, the realists know that won’t happen, it will follow the same pattern as previous windows, a car crash. Our board don’t have the connections or talent for a big rebuild with quality players. We will be weaker next season than we are now, just wait and see
Would be Tommy from Kilmarnock?
I never knew that Eric.
Good for calling him out.👍
The trophy cabinet has been full for at least the last two decades,I’m certainly not defending the mistakes this season from the boardroom but some people have to get a reality check…Most moaning weren’t born in the nineties…
Martinez with Maloney or the Motherwell manager… either would be certainly good team’s…
Some people don’t understand that we have no god given right to win everything
I think it will be Askou,and I think he already knows this.He has been at a few of our games,mostly in the company of John Collins.(Director of football???).One things for sure,he wasn’t scouting us for upcoming games v Motherwell.I believe he is getting his ducks in a row for next season,whilst simultaneously coaching Motherwell through to the end of the season.Wouldnt be my first choice but it looks increasingly like that’s who it will be.