Novo fears inexperience will keep him from Ibrox job

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NACHO NOVO, the former Rangers striker, concedes a lack of coaching experience is likely to cost him a chance of becoming a member of the first team staff with his old club.

The Spaniard has submitted a cv to the Ibrox board to be considered as Pedro Caixinha’s No.3 and, in doing so, joins a list of names including the likes of Alex Rae, Barry Ferguson, Peter Lovenkrands and Jonatan Johansson. Novo, who turned 38 on Sunday, is still playing for Northern Irish side Glentoran, and he believes this could work against him as he resigns himself to missing out on the post.

“I don’t really want to talk about some parts,” said Novo, who played in Fernando Ricksen’s charity foundation match at Fleetwood Town’s Highbury Stadium on Saturday. “I am disappointed about certain things, but not about the job.

“It is a big job and people like Fergie and Alex Rae have more experience, which is understandable. My focus was to come back into the youths, that is the start that I wanted. Obviously it has never happened.

“I just need to keep working and we will see what happens in the future. Just now, it is something I really want to do. I have got other things to prove in terms of experience but I have been with a lot of managers. You always get experience and you always see things differently. As a player, I always had hunger and I still do. I think if a job comes up I will give a lot of my time. I want the best job I can.

“It is all down to the manager at the end of the day and what he thinks and what he wants. And for Barry, Alex or whoever is interviewed, how they feel about the manager and his opinions. I don’t know because everyone is different.”

The man who spent six years in the blue of Rangers admits only the lure of going back to the Ibrox club could convince him to hang up his boots, adding: “It is this opportunity to coach. The new manager is the one who is going to need to sort out everything, how they train, how they play. You are really just there to help the manager.

“I don’t have experience [as a coach]. I have experience of training but more with kids and that is something I enjoyed.”