Only four days and 33 miles separated the appointments of Eddie Howe and Mark Wotte to posts at Bournemouth and Southampton respectively in January 2009.
Wotte, courtesy of his subsequent years as performance director for the Scottish Football Association, is acutely aware that life on England’s south coast is a world away from the mayhem of the game north of the border.
So, as Howe ponders dipping his toe in unfamiliar waters, Wotte can understand the Celtic target’s eagerness to bring in a recognised ally like Richard Hughes as director of football of the club.
There’s one significant issue troubling the Dutchman: it is that the director of football is supposed to help choose the manager — not the other way around — for many solid reasons.
As Howe’s proposed recruitment is on hold, Wotte would not be surprised if this proved a potential obstacle at Celtic where Fergal Harkin, Manchester City’s football partnerships manager, is understood to be favoured for the role. Unless the job description for a director of football has changed from what Wotte has always understood it to be, then Hughes cannot be a fit for the Celtic post.
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Wotte, who has long been a proponent of Scottish clubs adopting such a structure, said: “It’s legitimate for Eddie to ask for a director of football to ensure a level of confidentiality and trust between the roles. I see his point: [it would bring] more support by his side as he comes in to this huge Scottish club where he’ll want to work his way.
“But for the club, it’s the wrong way around. Celtic should appoint a director of football who helps pick the manager and is a long-term appointment independent of the manager. A club needs to feel comfortable with its director of football because, as Brendan Rodgers showed, the manager can leave at any time for a more attractive job. What if, after Rodgers, Leicester wants Eddie Howe? Then he could take Hughes with him.
“And, if the head coach loses eight games in a row, the director of football should make the best decision for the club — not for the manager. As Celtic’s director of football, Hughes [would also have] a very responsible job to look after different departments long term.
“If Celtic decide Hughes is the one [for them] for the next ten years then that’s not a problem; he could be a great appointment, I don’t know. But if it’s to accommodate Eddie because he’s a trustee of his and they’ve had good experiences together, then that’s different. I think the job description is absolutely key here.”
Wotte has operated in both camps. Hans van Breukelen was his DoF at Utrecht then Wotte held that post at Feyenoord when he hired Erwin Koeman as head coach after Ruud Gullit elected to depart.
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Wotte stressed that recruiting a director of football should be a separate task to the pursuit of Howe, instead of a part of the incoming deal to join the new chief executive Dominic McKay.
He said: “I’m not aware of the job description of the title Eddie is suggesting or what Celtic are demanding. Is Hughes to take care of jobs around the first team that Eddie doesn’t want to do, so that Eddie is always training or on the touchline? I can’t argue with that to make the manager feel comfortable. Maybe then he is head of first team football operations?
“But is he the man for the long-term vision, culture and strategy of Celtic who looks after the future if things go bad with Eddie? That’s the director of football job, and always has been at big European clubs. Every club respecting itself needs that figure.
“If I was Celtic, I’d look for someone to be like Michael Zorc at Borussia Dortmund, Marc Overmars at Ajax and Monchi at Sevilla: all former players who know the business. Appointed by the club, they work for the club. And if the potential director of football was a guy I like, appreciate, respect and has a proven record then I’d have two conversations: one with the manager for three seasons, and one with the director of football for between five and ten years.”
Wotte recognised Howe as a shrewd operator before and after they were promoted from youth and reserve ranks to being in charge of first teams in Hampshire. “Eddie was always at our reserve games looking at young players,” Wotte recalled. “I’ve seen him grow as an intelligent coach and fantastic Premier League manager.
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“Managing to keep Bournemouth in the Premier League to being Celtic boss is very different. I like his style of football, though; he’s likeable and would be a great Celtic signing. But it’s also fair to consider time after Eddie. So the club must think not only for three years but the next seven or more.”