John McGlynn says he is a ‘better manager’ for his time as a scout at Celtic as he prepares to face his old club in the Scottish League Cup with Raith Rovers.
The Scottish Championship club won’t have any fans to cheer them on in the quarter-final tie at Celtic Park on Thursday. McGlynn worked as scout at Parkhead under Brendan Rodgers and insists it’s helped him push Raith to the heights of Premiership play-offs and cup quarter-finals.
McGlynn worked with Rodgers at Celtic. (PAUL ELLIS/AFP/GettyImages)
He said: “Not only was I learning from Celtic, I was learning from the opposition. Some of the games I was going to — Barcelona, PSG, Bayern Munich. You learn from the way they play. It was two-fold: I picked up a lot from being involved with Brendan Rodgers and his staff, but also the teams I watched, domestically and in Europe.
“It was a massive learning curve. The scouting I did allowed me to work with John Park and see the recruitment at a club like Celtic. I believe I am a better manager for my time there – but It does help if you have Lionel Messi. Under Brendan, the tactics side of the game really came in. It was a modern, new era.
“You get younger coaches coming through and, although they might not have played the game at a high level, they are tactically sound. They are football geeks and are coming to the fore. The tactical side is what I have picked up a lot more.”
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