Smith on declining Scottish football

[Super_Ally 0]

His views are those of a coach with unique experience, who learned his trade at Dundee United when the Tannadice club was a European force, who is in his second spell as Rangers manager ââ?¬â?? between times having restored respectability to Scotland after the instability of Berti Vogts' reign ââ?¬â?? and who has first hand experience of life in England's Premier League.

 

Talk is cheap in football but when Smith weighs his words they are as solid as government bonds ââ?¬â?? more so perhaps, in the current financial climate. And that topic is one which particularly animated the Ibrox boss as he mused upon a summer in which Aberdeen, Falkirk and Motherwell have all been dismissed from their European tournaments, with Celtic and Hearts likely to follow them through the exit this week, although the Parkhead players have the consolation of the Europa League.

 

"We have had a lack of direction in our football and it gets left to scorelines to be the indicator. It gets left to managers to get the sack," said Smith.

 

"Then we see people who run the Scottish game knock back an offer from Sky, in my opinion one of the best football broadcasters in the world. We take Setanta, we lose a fortune, and these people are all still in their positions.

 

"How can that be? But it is what happens in Scottish football. We cost ourselves a fortune by bad decisions.

 

"It is easy to criticise Aberdeen or Hearts or Motherwell or our result against Kaunas last year ââ?¬â?? it is dead easy ââ?¬â?? but there needs to be a longer-term fix or we will be dragged down. We are being dragged down at the present minute.

 

"There is a whole raft of problems, but they are not new. In the early 1980s when we had just won a European youth championship, Andy Roxburgh did a report for the SFA stating that there would be a decrease in the number of footballers available to the professional game here and that unless some kind of action was taken, there would be a continuing decline in the levels of play.

 

"I felt that was strange because I was at Dundee United where we had a solely Scottish team and we had a youth team that won the Scottish youth championship.

 

"Yet, there's absolutely no doubt that we don't have the level of Scottish player that we did 20-odd years ago, because there has been a decline in the numbers. All they ever to do is talk about it. They don't do anything about it.

 

"Street football disappeared and we never replaced it ââ?¬â?? simple and basic but quite complicated to sort. For us to bring in a decent level of player to Scotland costs money ââ?¬â?? and the majority of clubs in Scotland can't afford that at the present moment. Even the Old Firm are hit.

 

"Someone said to me there are 60 Scottish players playing in the Championship. We used to have 60 playing in the old English First Division."

 

What then is the solution?

 

"It has to be political. It has to be educational," Smith insisted. "A recent report said that for kids to become decent players ââ?¬â?? just decent ââ?¬â?? they have to play for 24 hours in a week. In my day we did play 24 hours football a week ââ?¬â?? of course, we had eff-all else to do ââ?¬â?? but a generation later, kids play five or six. Two nights training, all supervised."

 

Adding to Smith's frustration are the domestic circumstances that thwart what he believes is the natural position of the Old Firm pair as European super-clubs.

 

"We two are continually in the top 20 teams in Europe in everything but finance. If the money was there, Rangers and Celtic would be amongst the biggest clubs in Europe.

 

"In Britain, who would be bigger than Rangers and Celtic? Only Manchester United.

 

"Arsenal are exceptionally well run off the pitch and they have an exceptional manager, but if we were on an equal footing, it would happen. We would need to extend our stadium.

 

"If someone wants to include Rangers and Celtic in a European league, we are ready. It might save football in Scotland, because if we continue as we are going, we will have no higher rated teams at all.

 

"That to me is the biggest problem of the lot."

 

From the Telegraph.

[Zappa 0]

It's rather bizarre that Walter Smith talks about knocking back the Sky deal as being so detrimental to Scottish football, which we all know it was, but then goes on later to say that Rangers & Celtic are ready to join a European league if the opportunity arises. Personally, I think the old firm leaving Scottish football would be even more damaging to the game in Scotland than practically anything else. I actually think that Walter Smith would word a discussion on this subject very differently to how he's being made out to have worded it in this article. It's all in the way it's edited. It's nicknamed 'cherry-picking' of information.

[Norris Cole 0]

Personally, I think the old firm leaving Scottish football would be even more damaging to the game in Scotland than practically anything else.

 

I agree. But what exactly would that have to do with us?

[Zappa 0]

I agree. But what exactly would that have to do with us?

I take it that your point is that if we left Scottish football for another league, why should we care that it's damaging to Scottish football??

[Norris Cole 0]

I take it that your point is that if we left Scottish football for another league, why should we care that it's damaging to Scottish football??

 

Indeed. Scottish football would have nothing to do with us if we moved to England.

[Big Spliff 0]

Indeed. Scottish football would have nothing to do with us if we moved to England.

 

TBH I'm not comfortable with that idea.

 

It smacks of the rich getting richer etc, and in the end the bubble bursts.

 

I would much rather Scottish football got stronger (including the National team) and Rangers got stronger with it - enabling us to improve our current position in Europe.

 

I think that's a substantial 10-year goal. How we'd do it is another matter.

[Zappa 0]

Indeed. Scottish football would have nothing to do with us if we moved to England.

We won't be moving into an English League any time soon & even if we did, the only benefit would be money. We would be leaving behind our club's ongoing history as a core element of Scottish football, something which many Bears will harp on about till the cows come home if the discussion is about something that suits their point of view. However, when it comes to the subject of the most legendary club in Scottish football literally uprooting & leaving behind it's roots in search of more money, all of a sudden the club's history isn't important?

[Norris Cole 0]

Right. Just to be clear, if Rangers uprooted and played their football in England, we'd have nothing to do with Scottish football and Scottish football would have nothing to do with us, on account of the fact we'd be accountable to the English FA, not the SFA or the SPL. As for the national team, I'm not sure how the Old Firm moving to England would adversely affect it. Rangers and Celtic would have less Scots in their team, but if Scottish players were good enough they'd still play in the Premiership, if not they'd play in the SPL - nothing would change in that respect. What is left of the Scottish league would be of no concern to Rangers if we were playing in another nation's league, just as the Belgian league or the Swedish league is of no concern to us. SPL clubs go bust? Doesn't affect us when we're playing in England. And incidentally, we've put up with enough shite from diddy teams with ideas above their station (Dundee Utd anyone) to give two hoots about what we'd leave behind in the event of moving to England.

[Zappa 0]

Right. Just to be clear, if Rangers uprooted and played their football in England, we'd have nothing to do with Scottish football and Scottish football would have nothing to do with us, on account of the fact we'd be accountable to the English FA, not the SFA or the SPL. As for the national team, I'm not sure how the Old Firm moving to England would adversely affect it. Rangers and Celtic would have less Scots in their team, but if Scottish players were good enough they'd still play in the Premiership, if not they'd play in the SPL - nothing would change in that respect. What is left of the Scottish league would be of no concern to Rangers if we were playing in another nation's league, just as the Belgian league or the Swedish league is of no concern to us. SPL clubs go bust? Doesn't affect us when we're playing in England. And incidentally, we've put up with enough shite from diddy teams with ideas above their station (Dundee Utd anyone) to give two hoots about what we'd leave behind in the event of moving to England.

No offense, but that's all completely irrelevant in the light of the fact that it's not going to happen.

 

I'm as pissed off with the SPL & SFA as most other Rangers fans, but shipping out to the EPL isn't the answer. Getting rid of the old suits earning serious money out of Scottish football for doing next to to nothing & employing people with more ideas to restructure the game here from top to bottom is the answer & I'm not talking about Smith's role at the SFA as a media go-between & general patsy, I'm talking about top to bottom. Smith can maybe stay, but not as a yes man.

[Zappa 0]

Getting rid of the old suits earning serious money out of Scottish football for doing next to to nothing & employing people with more ideas to restructure the game here from top to bottom is the answer & I'm not talking about Smith's role at the SFA as a media go-between & general patsy, I'm talking about top to bottom. Smith can maybe stay, but not as a yes man.

Just wanted to add that this isn't likely to happen either. Unfortunately were stuck with the old SPL & SFA suits until they're punted or die. Restructuring of Scottish football will be a long and hard slog for anyone interested in the game rather than themselves.