IT MAY HAVE BEEN SHORT BUT IT WAS SUCCESSFUL

Bhoys are in better place after McKay’s watch

DOM McKAY did not have a long spell as chief executive of Celtic.

But he leaves the club in a better position than when he joined it.

First thing’s first and that is to wish him and his family well after it was announced that he was stepping down at Parkhead for personal reasons.

Celtic have acted quickly with Michael Nicholson moving into the role in an acting capacity but fans will want to know about the impact of the CEO’s departure.

Ange Postecoglou arrived on McKay’s watch and that has to be deemed, on what we have seen so far, a highly positive move.

It was well known McKay was moving into the job before he arrived from the SRU.

There is no doubt there was a lot of work to be done and it needed to be done swiftly.

Peter Lawwell had a good run in the position but his term had run its course by the end of last season.

The mood around the support base was gloomy. The team was miles behind Rangers in the final league table and cup competitions were also disappointing.

With so many loan players disappearing and big names seeking pastures new, the word overhaul was an understatement.

The fact things have turned so quickly point to the fact that McKay, in a short space of time, did a good job.

The chase for Eddie Howe didn’t end well when the Englishman decided he didn’t want the job but Postecoglou has gone in and caught the imagination of the fans which means McKay more than made up for that.

Fair enough, the Aussie still has things to prove but the early signs are positive.

There is a style which is being imprinted onto the team that has excited the fans. So far, so good.

Working with the manager, McKay managed to facilitate the signing of 12 players during the last transfer window and just about every base was covered.

Certainly the key areas which desperately needed strengthening were addressed. It’s not just the volume of signings but their talent which has pleased the fans.

Kyogo Furuhashi is the obvious example. News of an injury setback that is going to rule him out for some weeks is a bitter blow. Even more so given the fact that it was sustained on international duty with Japan.

But he’s a cracker and Liel Abada looks good. Joe Hart and James McCarthy are big-name arrivals and there is potential in the likes of Liam Scales.

If you wish to be picky, there may have been a need for another body in the central area but, by and large, the right work was done in the transfer window.

In terms of sales, McKay was under pressure to get it right.

Let’s face it, there were few better at driving a good deal for Celtic than Lawwell and those were tough shoes to fill in that department.

But the sums obtained from the player departures were pretty impressive. Bagging over £30million for Kristoffer Ajer and Odsonne Edouard with the pair of them into the final year of their contracts at Celtic was superb business.

Ryan Christie had even less time to go on his deal and a more than acceptable figure was secured for his services from Bournemouth.

All in all, when you consider the fact that all three were going to go and that Celtic have managed to replace them and make a nice chunk of money at the same time, it reads well for McKay’s tenure. You can argue that maybe some of the agreements were in place or well down the line by the time the new CEO got in the door but that is debatable. The simple facts are that these deals were done on McKay’s watch and most Celtic fans are happy with the way the window turned out. It’s obvious that the sporting director or director of football role – if you want to call it that – is one which needs to be filled at some point soon.

McKay was not able to get that done but, to be fair, Postecolgou did say himself that the main priority during the transfer window was to sort out the playing staff because time was not on his side and he put that ahead of anything else.

The manager will want someone in place and it remains to be seen whether Nicholson is central to that or whether that will wait until a permanent appointment is made.

Could Lawwell even go back? Unlikely – but you never know.

Postecoglou also has to get backroom staff members arranged.

If you look at where Celtic were at when McKay walked in the front door and where they are now, it would be difficult to argue that they are not in a better place.

The sums obtained from the player departures were pretty impressive – over £30m

Generally, that’s the barometer for anyone in a position of power at a football club.

So in that sense McKay’s time, if short, should probably be seen as successful.