Stephen Thompson, the Dundee United chairman, yesterday defended his club’s lack of urgency in appointing a new manager, on the day that Kilmarnock, who were without a manager for three days compared to the three weeks at Tannadice since Craig Levein left, unveiled Jimmy Calderwood at Rugby Park.
Many have been intrigued at the so-called lack of progress at United in finding Levein’s successor, though the Tannadice chairman insisted yesterday that there was “no pressure of time” in appointing a new coach. Thompson also had some caustic words for those who have urged him to bring in a steady, seasoned pair of hands.
“I want to avoid bringing in someone here who represents ‘same old, same old’,” the United chairman said. “I’m not knocking Kilmarnock or Motherwell, but you look around and see the same names being trotted out all the time. I’m just trying to think ‘outside the box’ a bit for Dundee United, to try to find the best guy that I can. I’m speaking to tons of people, but I don’t just want to resort to a familiar name who is available.”
It is now a week since Thompson’s quest to bring Pat Fenlon from Bohemians to Tannadice foundered. United were unwilling to pay the Irish club up to £250,000 in compensation for Fenlon, so Thompson went back to the drawing board. The United chairman said yesterday he had also made the decision to step back from the brink and take weeks — maybe even months — to find Levein’s successor.
“I was told by some people last week that I should just have lashed out a hefty cheque for compensation to Bohemians for Pat Fenlon, but it wasn’t as easy as that,” Thompson added. “Bohemians have their own internal battles going on, and Pat is involved in all that.
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“Listen, my old man [Eddie Thompson, the late Dundee United chairman] put £5 million of his own money into this club, so no one needs to tell me how important Dundee United is. I’m trying to do what is best for this club. I’m just keen to avoid resorting to the sort of names that everyone in Scotland is familiar with.
“Ideally, we want to find someone who is young, keen and talented who will do a great job for this club. But it’s a hard task — and I might get it wrong. I’m going to take my time — it might be another week, another month, I don’t know. What I do know is that a manager at a football club is the absolute key figure. You might be the best chairman in the world — which I’m not — but if you have a poor manager then it all counts for nothing. So finding the right person is vitally important.
“Everything is a risk. Motherwell thought they had found someone different, someone bright in Jim Gannon, but it didn’t work out. I’m aware of these pitfalls, but it still seems worth trying for. Since the days of Jim McLean, and more recently Craig Levein, everyone at United is aware of the importance of getting a really good manager.”
Thompson rejected the notion, hearing that Kilmarnock had appointed Calderwood yesterday, that it made Dundee United look slovenly in their own attempts to land a new manager.
“We are in a totally different situation from Kilmarnock,” he said. “They are in quite a desperate situation, second bottom of the league, and needing a guy in quite urgently — and maybe an old head.
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“At United we’re not facing the same urgency. We are challenging for third in the league and have just won two games on the bounce. OK, we got hammered 7-1 by Rangers the other week, but that was a reaction to Craig Levein leaving. Craig was like a fatherfigure to many of these guys. But we’re over that now.”
Ironically, Levein has suggested a couple of names to Thompson as a possible successor, though the United chairman says he is speaking to football people all over Britain as he searches for the right appointment. In the meantime, Peter Houston, Levein’s former assistant, will continue in charge of United.
“Peter has had a good couple of games, and, in effect, is our interim manager,” Thompson said. “He has said to me, ‘Take as long as you like — just get it right.’ Craig Levein has also offered some advice, and I’m also picking the brains of some pretty senior football figures in England.
“Like I say, I’m relaxed about the timescale: if it is a week, or two months, fine. What I will say is, if in six months’ time we still don’t have a new manager, then something is seriously wrong. I’m trying to scour this country and beyond to see what might be available. It’s a laborious task, but it’s the right way to go.”