Celtic are in advanced talks with the former Australia boss after negotiations broke down with Eddie Howe with the board searching for a replacement to Neil Lennon who resigned in February; Postecoglou is currently in charge of Yokohama F. Marinos in Japan
Wednesday 2 June 2021 16:25, UK
Appointing Ange Postecoglou as Celtic manager would be a "big risk", according to former Australia goalkeeper Mark Bosnich.
Celtic are in advanced talks with the former Australia boss after negotiations broke down with Eddie Howe with the board searching for a replacement to Neil Lennon who resigned in February.
The club hope to conclude a deal for their next manager by the middle of next week after being impressed by Postecoglou's domestic and international success in Australia and Japan, where he is currently in charge of Yokohama F. Marinos.
Bosnich told Sky Sports News: "He did have a fantastic time here at a club called Brisbane Roar, where he pretty much revolutionised the way football was played over here. And he's won the title in his first foray into Asia.
"I can understand the angst from Celtic supporters because winning the title here in Australia and winning the title in Japan is not managing in the Scottish Premiership, and nor is it managing a club the size of Celtic, whose worldwide support is right up there, and they're an absolutely massive club.
"If he does get appointed, he does deserve a chance, but it is a big risk - there's no doubt about that."
Bosnich, whose club included spells in the Premier League with Manchester United, Aston Villa and Chelsea, compared concern over Postecoglou's appointment to that of Arsene Wenger at Arsenal in 1996.
Wenger arrived as a largely unknown figure to English football fans, but went on to win three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups.
"I was in England when Arsene Wenger was appointed as Arsenal manager and I'll never forget the back pages where the vast majority of them had the headline of 'Arsene who?' Well we found out since who Arsene Wenger was," said Bosnich, who has previously worked alongside Postecoglou as a pundit.
"In terms of his playing philosophy, I used to have debates with him because he was a big fan of this 'it's about the process and that's more important than the result', but he'll find out very, very quickly - as I'm sure he has done in Japan - that the result is going to define exactly how he goes here.
"He loves playing attractive football, he loves his team to press high, he loves to have centre-backs that can play out from the back. He prefers to play a 4-3-3, sometimes that can be a 4-2-3-1, but if there's one word to describe him in terms of his coaching, that would be adaptable."
