Stephen McManus is the prefect choice for a vital role at Celtic

Speaking to the club website as he welcomed Kewell to the club, Postecoglou was also keen to point to the importance of the role McManus will playing going forward.

“I was keen to restructure our coaching set up, a critical part of this was having a close link between the first team and B Team coaching structures – and Stephen’s role will also be hugely important for us as we look to get that conveyer belt of talent going between the B Team, directly up to the first team.

“The B Team will again compete in the Lowland League, something which will be a crucial development opportunity for our young players as they aim to progress and advance further. I wanted a really strong connection to the development of our B Team and Stephen, with his knowledge of our current first-team philosophy and demands will be ideal in this role.”

You’d have to say this role is going to come with a great deal of responsibility for Stephen McManus. As a player himself who made the step from the youth ranks to the first team and indeed onto captaining the club, McManus is someone who will know inside out the demands required to be made on the players looking to make the step up, but will also be aware of the difficulties those young players will face.

Such previous experience, as someone who made the step-up, will be vital in terms of the empathy he will be able to exhibit to those youngsters, but he will also be an example to them all that it can be achieved.

CIS CUP FINAL 2006 CELTIC v DUNFERMLINE, 19 March 2006. Celtic’s Stephen McManus (left) lifts the trophy

And now with a year having worked under Ange Postecoglou, McManus’ will have gained the experience of exactly what this manager requires tactically, physically and mentally in graduates from the B-Team, ensuring all the boxes are ticked as the young guns are gradually introduced to the Celtic first team.

This will be no easy task for McManus, after all Celtic’s pathway plans for youngsters have been lacking in recent years and their readiness for first team football, having only experience the Lowland League Level, will be a tough transition from which to genuinely gauge readiness.

It’s an ambitious aim for Ange Postecoglou to create a ‘conveyer belt’ from Lowland League football to the Celtic first team, given a need to be not only competitive, but also successful in every tournament the Club enters allows very little room for error.

As such varying degrees of development and understandable mistakes from youngsters making the step up need to be ironed out as much as possible before they enter the first team environment. McManus knowledge of the demands made on players by Postecoglou could therefore be vital.

UEFA Champions League qualification, Herning, Denmark Herning, Denmark. 28th, July 2021. Juninho 73 of FC Midtjylland and Dane Murray 47 of Celtic seen during  match at MCH Arena in Herning, Denmark Photo Gonzales Photo/Lasse Lagoni

Last season the likes of Dane Murray, Owen Moffat, Joey Dawson and Ben Doak – prior to leaving for Liverpool – all made the step up, but in truth much of those opportunities for promotion came down to a lack of squad depth at the time.

The challenge for McManus and the players he looks to bridge between the B-Team and the first team, will now be to ensure such promotions remain a possibility, even when a competitive first team environment is in full swing. And with the January signings seeing an end to B-Team players making appearances last season, and with a further strengthening of the squad likely to occur this summer, the task for McManus and these youngsters breaking through is likely to be all the harder.

However, this has to be viewed as a long term-role for McManus and a key position at the club. We’ve lost too many players to other clubs due to a lack of a credible pathway to the first team, now Ange Postecoglou is setting about ensuring the very real possibility of first team football can be evidenced at Celtic.

Stephen McManus (R) and Evander Sno (L) of Celtic tackle Kaka of AC Milan during the UEFA Champions League Round 16 first leg match between Celtic and AC Milan at Celtic Park on February 20, 2007. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Appointing McManus to the role designed to address that issue and ensure the players are fully prepared for what will be expected of them when they get there is a common-sense appointment.

This is a man who has been there and done it, and also has seen at first-hand what the manager requires from his players. It’s going to be a vital role at Celtic and McManus may well be the perfect choice to ensure it works.

David Potter’s new book, Willie Fernie – Putting on the Style is featured in the new edition of the Celtic View which is out now and available from the Celtic Stores. You can also pick up the Willie Fernie book there too or order direct from Celtic Star Books, link below…