Thomson backs firm friend Brown to land on his feet in football management after Pittodrie farewell
KEVIN THOMSON watched Scott Brown’s ability and determination take him to the top as a footballer.
Now the former Scotland international is convinced he can prove it all over again by becoming a coach at the highest levels of the game.
Brown parted company with Aberdeen last week after his player-coach contract at Pittodrie was cancelled by mutual consent.
Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou later admitted that the door would always be open for the former captain to return to the club in some capacity.
While Thomson believes a return to Parkhead would be the dream golden ticket for Brown, he has urged him to rest and time his run back into football coaching and management to perfection.
“It’s come right out of the blue,” said Thomson. “His little boy is at Hibs alongside my two boys and he pulled up beside me and jumped in the car, as he always does, and said, ‘that’s me done, mate’.
“I asked him what was going on and I told him that he couldn’t retire because he was playing at the top level every week in the Scottish Premiership and was captain of a big club.
“I told him to keep on playing but I think Jim Goodwin [the new Aberdeen manager] had different ideas and his own staff so that is why he has left the club.
“Every manager should want Scott to be part of their backroom team. I genuinely mean this when I say it: I am not sure what his next step is going to be in football.
“But Scott was born to be a leader and he proved to everybody that he had what it took to become a top footballer.
“Knowing Scott the way I do, he will have that same hunger, energy and desire to prove to everybody once again that he can successfully transition from being a top player into becoming a top coach or manager.
“He won’t be satisfied until he is as successful in football as a coach or a manager as he was during his career as a player.
“In order to be a top manager you need to be a top coach. The players need to believe in what you are saying tactically and they need to believe you on the pitch. The game is evolving, you cannot do it all yourself.
“I know Scott inside out and I am not sure he has the patience for the bibs-and-cones stuff or to go on the rung of the ladder that I started [League Two].
“I don’t see why Scott wouldn’t end up back at Celtic as he is one of the most highly decorated players in the history of the club.
“When you think of some of the greats that have played for and managed Celtic, that Scott’s name is always going to be up there in the history with them is testament to the player he was.
“I just don’t know what capacity Scott would go back to Celtic right now as Ange Postecoglou seems to have a good thing going with the likes of Stephen McManus, John Kennedy and Darren O’Dea in his back-room team.
“Timing is important in football – when it comes to coaching and management you need to be in the right place at the right time. There might be an opportunity in the academy with Chris McCart or something like that.”
Thomson also reckons Brown should take former Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers up on his offer to go down and visit his old mentor at Leicester City’s King Power Stadium.
Rodgers has invited Brown to spend some time with him and his coaching staff in the Midlands over the coming weeks in order to give him some insight into what it takes to survive in top-level management as well as help his own coaching career.
The Leicester manager has also tipped him to be a future Celtic manager, although Thomson revealed that Brown’s phone has already been ringing with all sorts of offers.
“Brendan Rodgers talked about Scott as sprinkling some gold dust by giving advice to the players. I would tell him to take up that offer and see how things are – not jump back in too deep, too quickly.
“He should take time to learn his coaching trade and see what path he wants to take and go and grab it. The one piece of advice I would give Scott is to take his time over his next career move. I know he won’t because he does everything at 100 miles per hour.
“I know people have been on the phone to him already with all sorts of offers though. Scott won’t be short of opportunities come the summer.”
Whatever happens next for Brown, he will be backed to the hilt by his footballing friend. The pair have been inseparable since their younger days at Hibs despite the fact they once lined up against each other in the Old Firm.
Thomson said: “The team that Scott played for loved him and the team that he played against hated him. He doesn’t lose any sleep over that and he never has.
“He loved the camaraderie and the banter and that was always his motivation whenever people gave him stick. He always stuck his chest out and showed how good a player he was. Scott will do the same as a coach.”
He won’t be satisfied until he is as successful a coach or manager as he was as a player