ANGE Postecoglou has praised the Celtic coaches he inherited when he arrived at Parkhead last month for embracing his attacking football philosophy – but pledged to add to his backroom team in the coming weeks.
Greek-Australian manager Postecoglou will work with John Kennedy and Gavin Strachan in the 2021/22 campaign and has been impressed with how quickly they have adapted to the changes he has implemented in pre-season.
However, the former Australia and Yokohama F Marinos coach, whose team take on Midtjylland of Denmark in their opening Champions League qualifier on Tuesday week, stressed he will be bringing in his own support staff.
“My history is if there’s good people in the building then there’s no reason to change it,” he said. “So far all the staff have been excellent and have embraced where we want to go to.
“I will back my judgment in all these things. I take responsibility at the end of the day. We need to add to our staff for sure. We will be bringing in people at the appropriate time. Not necessarily in the coaching area, but there’s other areas we need to bolster.”
Meanwhile, Postecoglou, whose team will play Charlton Athletic in their second pre-season friendly in Newport in Wales this afternoon, has revealed he will consult the senior members of his squad before appointing a replacement for Scott Brown as captain.
“The captaincy is always important,” he said. “Whoever your leader is it has to be someone with similar ideals, values and beliefs that I have.
“Someone who puts the club and its values above all else and drives those things. That’s not new - they have stood the test of time for over 100 years. Somebody who understands what it means to pull on the Celtic shirt and its history and traditions will be the person most suitable to the role.
“Scott Brown epitomised that. With Scott leaving, it’s obviously a massive gap there. I will sit down with some good experienced players who have been here for quite a while and get their thoughts. Then I’ll see how they are round the place and then I’ll make the decision.”
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