IDENTITY CRISIS
Archibald fears Jags are losing their soul
ALAN ARCHIBALD admits alarm bells are ringing at Partick over a takeover bid and the erosion of the club’s identity.
The former Jags player and boss, who was dismissed last October after five years at the helm, is worried by recent developments on and off the park.
A buyout from a Chinese-American consortium is still being mooted with Gary Caldwell’s side sitting at the foot of the Championship.
And Archibald feels Thistle are beginning to lose the values that helped him lead the club to a top-six finish in the Premiership just three seasons ago.
Legendary striker Kris Doolan left under a cloud this summer and former gaffer Archibald said: “Partick Thistle is a special club and they need an identity. It is starting to drift away a wee bit.
“A lot of people who worked at the club for a long time have moved on. And the way they did certain things – such as Kris Doolan’s departure – didn’t happen before.
“It’s a bit in limbo just now, with stories coming out about the buses and things like that. That wasn’t happening at the club before.
“That to me stinks of people going in different directions. It’s not what you want at a football club.”
Archibald has signed up to be part of Doolan’s testimonial on Sunday against a Celtic select.
And he insists the striker, now at Ayr, was the standard bearer in the Jags’ dressing room.
He said: “I used to use Kris as a role model for all the young guys.”
A Partick Thistle Legends XI will take on a Celtic Legends XI on Sunday, September 15 at 4pm.