McInnes right man but this is wrong time

ABERDEEN McGraw urges ex-Cappielow student Del to steer clear of Scotland hotseat STAYING POWER

ALLAN McGRAW insists Derek McInnes would be perfect for Scotland but has warned his old pupil the national team would be wrong for him just now.

The Aberdeen boss is fancied by bookies to succeed Gordon Strachan but McGraw says he has plenty to achieve at club level before considering international football.

Legendary Morton gaffer McGraw knew after only a month mentoring a teenage McInnes that he would become a boss.

And so it proved with the Dons manager, 46, at Hampden on Sunday to present him with his award after he was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.

McGraw, 78, said: “It’s not a surprise to see Derek linked with the Scotland job but I wouldn’t like to see him going to it.

“He has done well at Aberdeen but I don’t think the Scotland manager’s right for him. He’s right for them because they need a good manager but I don’t think he’d be tempted.

“He has a lot to offer to a club day to day – he has to be involved that way. I know they say they go round places watching players but is the manager really involved?

“He doesn’t tell them how to train. If I was at the SFA I’d probably try to get him – he has been very successful. I’d like to see it happening one day but not this time.

“Maybe in a few years’ time. He’d be ready for it as a manager, ready for any job.

“But he’s too young for international management. How often would he see his players? And he’s a players’ man.

“He’s a worker and likes working with players. I’d expect him to go a bigger club, there’s no doubt about that.” McGraw handed McInnes – now in his third club job after taking charge of St Johnstone aged 36 then Bristol City – his debut before he went on to become skipper.

And the veteran added: “From the first month I knew he’d be a coach or a manager. He went into it quicker than I thought he would.

“He was inquisitive, even at 16. He’d come into my office and I’d be talking to him but then he’d be asking me questions – ‘What do you do if this happens?’ He learned well and listened. John McMaster played a big part in that. He was influential, particularly if we were in a bad spell. The next morning we’d say, ‘Right, Derek you’re up front’ and he’d pull them all out.

“He’s good with people, knows how to treat them. He’ll be strict but sometimes you have to be. You have to be fair too.”

McGraw admits his award was a “great honour” after not knowing his former student would be the one handing it over.

And McInnes said: “I was far from perfect in those early years – I had some bad games – but Allan saw something in me and gave me that confidence.

“And for young players, having the confidence of your manager can accelerate you quickly. You responded to that.”