Celtic B team coach Darren O'Dea has claimed Ange Postecoglou views himself as the director of football at Parkhead
The ex-Ireland cap is currently sharing head coach duties in charge of the Celtic B team alongside former captain Stephen McManus, and has opened up on the restructuring of the backroom staff in Glasgow's east end this summer. Coach Harry Kewell arrived at the Scottish champions as part of the overhaul, with Gavin Strachan and John Kennedy also continuing their duties with the first-team.
With the Colt side in action in the Lowland League, O'Dea and McManus are keeping an eye on the youngsters in the fifth tier as the look to create a pathway to the Scottish Premiership side. And O'Dea has revealed the Parkhead boss has taken a keen interest in implementing his football vision throughout the academy structure. When asked about his role at Celtic, O'Dea told Off the Ball: "It’s a joint role; the two of us lead the B team (with McManus).
"Essentially it’s the reserve team, that’s the easiest way to explain it. But the difference is now that this year there’s been a restructuring it’s directly under the manager.
"He takes a massive say in it. It’s essentially trying to align our team into the first team in terms of style of play, culture, profile of player, recruitment – everything aligns into the first-team. Hopefully this alignment gives us a better chance to get more players through.
"He believes in what he does. Clearly everyone in the club takes strength from that, and I am learning a lot from it."
When asked if he had spent a lot of time working with Postecoglou, he said: "Yes, it's part of the role. I think the way he would describe it is myself and Stephen (McManus) would be kind of head coaches and he is the director of football.
"Ultimately everything will go through him, but he gives us a lot of autonomy to make decisions. That's a fantastic learning experience for me.
"He is someone you look at and think in 30 years time I will probably be repeating things he has said. That is gold dust.
"You know you are in the right place. I am very fortunate."
READ NEXT
