Taking on board the sage advice which his young daughter gave him every Saturday morning before he headed off to a match proved to be beneficial for Martin O’Neill when he was in charge of Wycombe Wanderers back in the early 1990s.
“Just win,” were the words which the Northern Irishman always had rattling around inside his head as he made his way to Adams Park or some other lower league English ground in the early days of his managerial career.
More often than not during his time in Buckinghamshire, his men did exactly that. He guided The Blues to back-to-back promotions as well as Conference Cup and FA Trophy glory. The memorable spell proved to be the launchpad to far bigger and better things for him.
O’Neill was unable to deliver the victories which supporters longed for in Celtic’s final three games before the international break – a dire run of form which has fuelled wild speculation about his future at Parkhead in recent days regardless of the public backing he has received from chief executive Michael Nicholson.
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Yet, recognising the overriding need to pick up all three points, to progress to the next round, to lift the trophy, to give fans a result they could cheer, by whatever means necessary has always served the double European Cup winner rather well over the years.
Anyone who has worked or is currently employed in his cutthroat profession will agree that winning is far more important than producing innovative, expansive, swashbuckling football.
Sebastien Pocognoli, who will step into the Scotland dugout for the first time this afternoon when the national team take on Slovenia in their opening Nations League game in the Stožice Stadium in Ljubljana, would do well to recite the Martin O’Neill mantra in the days ahead and "just win".
There is great excitement about the Belgian taking over among Tartan Army footsoldiers, who were bereft when their heroes failed to progress to the knockout rounds of the World Cup in the United States back in June, at the moment.
The former Royal Union Saint-Gilloise (RUSG) and Monaco manager is young, foreign, highly regarded on the continent, ambitious and completely different to anyone who has done the job before
Supporters are eager to see the players Pocognoli selects, the formation he sets up with and the tactics he uses. There are high hopes that his team will be more entertaining than they have often been of late.
Steve Clarke, who led his country through to the Euro 2020, Euro 2024 and World Cup 2026 finals during his record-breaking seven-and-a-half reign, is rightly considered to be the most successful Scotland manager ever. His successor will be doing extremely well indeed to replicate his achievements.
Still, there were always, despite the footballers he brought through, despite the huge strides forward which were unquestionably made on his watch, despite the qualifications he secured and despite the momentous triumphs which he oversaw against Israel, Serbia, Austria, Spain, Norway and Denmark, grumbles in the stands about the ultra-cautious, defence-first approach which he favoured during his lengthy tenure.
For many, Scotland could and always should try to play with more attacking intent. Optimism abounds that Pocognoli will be able to deliver the same sort of aggressive and dynamic football which his RUSG side did two seasons ago when they won the Pro League and defeated Twente, Nice and Braga in the Europa League and get hearts racing again.
He is certainly making all of the right noises. When he announced his squad for the matches against Slovenia, Switzerland and North Macedonia earlier this month he said, “The focus is on changing some principles. I am quite direct in my game offensively and defensively. I try to be a little bit more on the front foot.”
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The 39-year-old, who has only spent two seasons as a manager, deserves time to make the tweaks which he wants to and patience and understanding from supporters if losses are suffered as he does so.
Ultimately, though, he will have to deliver victories if he is to placate the baying hordes and survive in his high-profile, high-pressure role. Nobody will be gushing about his 3-4-1-2 system, his use of overlapping wing-backs and his insistence on fluid midfield interplay if reverses against rivals who should be overcome are suffered.
Fans celebrated when Josh Doig, Luis Binks, Colby Donovan, Luke Graham, Stephen Welsh, Lennon Miller, Josh McPake, Kristi Montgomery, Findlay Curtis, Kieron Bowie, Robbie Ure, Oli McBurnie and James Wilson were named in the national squad for this quadruple header. It definitely felt like the dawn of a brave new era.
With four fixtures coming up in the next 10 days, they should all get game time at some stage. But Pocognoli would be wise to persevere with the experience of Angus Gunn, Aaron Hickey, Nathan Patterson, Jack Hendry, Scott McKenna, Andy Robertson, Lewis Ferguson, Billy Gilmour, Ben Gannon-Doak, John McGinn and Ryan Chrstie. Those stalwarts should form the nucleus of his starting line-up.
It was heartening to see pictures of Scott McTominay, the Napoli midfielder who has missed this camp due to the ablation procedure he underwent in hospital in Manchester on Tuesday to correct irregular heart rhythms, back in the gym on Thursday. He, too, should reclaim his position when he returns.
Pocognoli has impressed since being appointed in August. He has been obliging with the media and has spoken a great deal of sense. You wish him well. But it is to be hoped that he is more Jens Berthel Askou than Wilfried Nancy and can do far more than talk a good game.
If he is, he may just enjoy the same sort of longevity as serial winner Martin O’Neill.
