Sharp work needed in manager search

To lose one potential manager might be seen as unfortunate, to lose two might be seen as carelessness, to paraphrase the Irish playwright Oscar Wilde.

Dundee FC must understand the importance of being earnest in their pursuit of a boss who can turn their fortunes around after problematic moves for Jack Ross and Shaun Maloney.

This situation has dragged on far too long and the club will now interview candidates who know they are third choice.

Swift action is required to give the new boss the best chance of recruiting the three or four players I believe the hierarchy think are needed to galvanise a promotion campaign.

There’s a state of flux at the club presently.

They recently reiterated plans to move to a new stadium at Camperdown and have had a deal in place for some time with John Bennett, who owns Dens Park, to sell them it at an agreed price.

That agreement lasts until the end of 2023.

If the plans for a new ground go ahead, they’ll finally give the club what it currently lacks: its own stadium and training facilities and an academy set up to produce players who can attract big transfer fees.

Next season, they should be the big dogs in the Championship, but a hidden danger lurks in the west.

Queen’s Park, who were amateurs for 152 years, are now full-time and backed by wealthy entrepreneur Willie Haughey.

Currently they’re refurbishing Lesser Hampden, have a new training ground and have

big plans to make the Premiership in the coming years, as well as producing top players from their academy like Andy Robertson.

The appointment of AZ Alkmaar’s former sporting director Marijn Beueker as director of football signals the Spiders’ big ambitions.

Next season’s Championship may, on paper, be the weakest it’s been for a long time but Dundee will be the name everyone wants to beat, so there will be no assured passage back to the top flight.

Dundee need to get the right manager in pronto to prepare for a huge season ahead.

● I’m not a gambler, probably on account of the fact that I saw too many of my old fella’s choices at Aintree and Newmarket marked as also rans.

But I can’t get worked up about the stick Dundee United are getting from some fans over their new sponsorship deal with an Irish betting company.

Gambling addiction is a big issue and it’s debatable how much campaigns to raise awareness of responsible gambling actually help those who are addicted.

I’m not convinced it’s football’s job to police individual betting habits of fans and I’m not persuaded

of the moral duty of the sport to refuse financial backing from an industry which is regulated tightly.

I’m in favour of educational campaigns to raise awareness of how easy it is to get sucked into losing money, but let’s not be hypocritical about football.

Scotland have just failed to qualify for a World Cup whose infrastructure was built on the backs of migrant workers who endured appalling working conditions in Qatar.

From the poorest countries on the planet, they had limited life choices, unlike those who choose to gamble.

TWO DOWN: Jack Ross and Shaun Maloney were favoured contenders for Dundee job.