KANCHELSKIS HOPES HE CAN MANAGE IN SCOTLAND

ANDREI KANCHELSKIS has revealed he dreams of managing in Scotland after being inspired by the glorious career of legendary boss Sir Alex Ferguson.

The former Rangers winger, 51, won three titles, three Scottish Cups and a League Cup at Ibrox after making a £5.5million move from Fiorentina in 1998.

After a fall-out with Dick Advocaat and a brief loan at Manchester City, Kanchelskis joined Southampton on a free transfer in 2002.

He is currently in charge of PFC Navbahor Namangan in Uzbekistan but the ex-Manchester United star, who won two Premier League titles under Ferguson at Old Trafford, has a burning desire to manage on British shores.

Since 2007, Kanchelskis has worked at several clubs in Russia and Latvia as a director of football, assistant manager and now as a top boss.

He held talks with Derry City in 2015 and said: ‘My aim was always to become a manager after I finished playing and I would like to return to Scotland to manage.

‘I’ve made sure I have the right education and built my CV with the clubs I have managed, which has been very tough but I felt was important to give me the skills I need to manage a team in the UK. Now I have my UEFA Pro license, and with the experience I have, I believe I’m one step closer to managing in British football.

‘I made my name at Manchester United under Sir Alex, who knows what it takes and what it means to be a winner. People also have to remember what he achieved at St Mirren and Aberdeen before he went to United.

‘From the moment I went into the dressing room at Old Trafford, I knew he was a manager who would lead us to great times.

‘When we won the Premier League in 1993, it was a magical moment because United had not been champions for 26 years. That was particularly special after we narrowly missed out to Leeds United the previous year, which was hard to take.’ Kanchelskis (below, left, with Ferguson) recalls his time in Glasgow with great fondness, even if his relationship with Advocaat turned sour before he clashed with Alex McLeish. He speaks candidly about his time at Rangers in his autobiography Russian Winters and opened up on his Ibrox career again this week. He added: ‘I had a fantastic time at Rangers and won everything domestically, plus it was good playing in Europe with Rangers. It is a fantastic club with an immense history, passionate fanbase and a fantastic set-up. I enjoyed the Scottish culture and I like how honest they are at all times.

‘I had my ups and downs with Dick Advocaat and I still feel he made it a pretty exclusive Dutch boys’ club with all the Holland internationals there. But I also saw the other side as he knew what he would get with those lads and what was needed to be successful.

‘There was a lot of pressure from the board to succeed in not just the domestic game, but in Europe too.

‘I would have liked to stay longer, but with managerial changes and different philosophies coming in, I knew I had to move on.’