<\/p>\n
Ange Postecoglou has emerged as a favourite with both bookmakers and fans to succeed Steve Clarke as Scotland manager following the nation\u2019s group stage exit at the World Cup. <\/p>\n
Clarke resigned on Saturday after the nation finished the 11th-best third-placed team, with just three points and a negative goal difference from their three matches. <\/p>\n
UFC 329: McGregor v Holloway 2 | SUN 12 JULY 11AM AEST | Conor McGregor is back. The Irish superstar takes on the always dangerous Max Holloway in a rematch 13 years in the making | Order Now with Main Event on Kayo Sports<\/a>.<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n Postecoglou \u2014 along with David Moyes \u2014 has been named as a frontrunner in replace Clarke with his return to management thought to be edging closer.<\/p>\n The Australian has not worked as a manager since his 39-day sacking at Nottingham Forest, which came months after being shown the door at Tottenham despite winning the Europa League.<\/p>\n He has instead been working in the media, including with ITV at this year\u2019s World Cup. <\/p>\n Prior to his Spurs stint, Postecoglou was a successful, and extremely popular, manager at Celtic where he won the Scottish Premiership in consecutive seasons, as well as the Scottish Cup once, and Scottish League Cup twice. <\/p>\n As such, he\u2019s a name still on the mind of Scottish football \u2014 but despite being at short odds, links to the Australian have come with a brutal reality check. <\/p>\n \u201cThe job cannot attract the elite,\u201d wrote The Times\u2019<\/i> Scottish Football Correspondent, Michael Grant. <\/p>\n \u201cA salary bracket somewhere between \u00a3600,000-\u00a3750,000 is competitive enough but it also eliminates a whole chorus line of headline acts. <\/p>\n \u201cAnge Postecoglou \u2014 being championed by many since the Clarke news broke \u2014 was believed to be on \u00a33 million a year at Nottingham Forest and a reported \u00a35million a year before that at Tottenham. <\/p>\n READ MORE <\/b><\/p>\n Cup insanity as Aussie rivals pull off all-time shock in huge shootout, VAR drama <\/a><\/b><\/i><\/p>\n Socceroos\u2019 full World Cup path after 96th-minute drama, and when they could face England<\/a><\/b><\/i><\/p>\n \u201cThe SFA will doubtless try to push the boat out, maybe inching towards seven figures for their next man, but it is inconceivable that Postecoglou would be interested.\u201d <\/p>\n The BBC\u2019s<\/i> Nick McPheat wrote similar, describing pay demands as the \u201celephant in the room\u201d when it comes to Postecoglou.<\/p>\n \u201cPostecoglou ticks nearly every box, but with a reported \u00a35m yearly salary at Spurs followed by a supposed \u00a33m-a-season deal at Forest, it would be fanciful to think the SFA can come anywhere near matching those figures,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, former Crystal Palace chairman and Talksport <\/i>personality Simon Jordan <\/p>\n \u201cUnless he\u2019s going to sacrifice some salary … then he\u2019s not going to manage Scotland.<\/p>\n \u201cThe problem with Postecoglou is that in his own mind\u2019s eye he thinks he\u2019s an elite manager.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd so with that in mind, he\u2019s not going to want to manage Scotland because that\u2019s not going to give him the outcomes he thinks he\u2019s potentially entitled to.\u201d <\/p>\n UGLY FALLOUT TO WORLD CUP FLOP<\/b><\/p>\n South Korean football fans angered by the country\u2019s World Cup first-round exit greeted the returning squad early Tuesday with one message for head coach Hong: His time was up.<\/p>\n Hong, a former national team defender, resigned on Sunday after South Korea finished the group stage with one win and two losses, dashing hopes of a deep run led by captain Son Heung-min.<\/p>\n South Korea crashed out after failing to qualify for the knockout stage as one of the tournament\u2019s eight best third-placed teams.<\/p>\n The Round of 32 had appeared within reach until a shock 1-0 defeat to lower-ranked South Africa in their final group match ended their campaign.<\/p>\n Hong walked silently out of the arrival gate at Incheon International Airport under heavy media scrutiny, declining to answer reporters\u2019 questions.<\/p>\n Fans booed and chanted \u201cHong out!\u201d as he made his way out of the airport, but applauded the players who followed behind him.<\/p>\n \u201cThanks for all your hard work!\u201d one fan shouted as the players emerged, in stark contrast to the jeers aimed at Hong.<\/p>\n Police cordoned off a route extending from inside the terminal to the waiting bus outside, as several dozen protesters gathered nearby.<\/p>\n \u201cSouth Korean football is dead,\u201d read one banner held aloft by fans who had waited for hours at Incheon International Airport.<\/p>\n \u201cHong, you must quit,\u201d the crowd chanted, beating drums to amplify their protest.<\/p>\n Hong\u2019s post-match admission that he was struggling to understand what had gone wrong did little to stem the criticism.<\/p>\n And his Sunday resignation did little to satisfy Kim Gi-mo, who came to the airport to voice his frustration.<\/p>\n \u201cI question whether his resignation was sincere, given his attitude when he made the announcement,\u201d Kim told AFP.<\/p>\n \u201cHe ruined this festival that only comes once every four years. I came here to see the person responsible for that.\u201d<\/p>\n Questions had already lingered over the Korea Football Association\u2019s 2024 decision to appoint Hong to be in charge, with critics arguing the selection process lacked transparency even before the World Cup campaign unravelled.<\/p>\n The KFA did not organise an official welcome ceremony for the returning squad. It was not the first hostile reception for Hong.<\/p>\n In 2014, angry supporters threw Korean sweets at the team after they returned from Brazil, where they were eliminated in the group stage during Hong\u2019s first spell as national team coach.<\/p>\n South Korean media had labelled the 2026 squad a \u201cgolden generation\u201d, featuring internationally established players such as former Tottenham Hotspur captain Son, Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae and Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in.<\/p>\n Expectations were high, with many fans believing the team could reach the Round of 16, particularly as the tournament was widely expected to be Son\u2019s last World Cup.<\/p>\n The captain turns 34 next month.<\/p>\n But Hong\u2019s decision to leave Son on the bench in the first half for the decisive match against South Africa baffled and angered many supporters.<\/p>\n \u201cI was very shocked that he benched Son against South Africa,\u201d Song Min-kyung, a 20-year-old university student, told AFP at the airport.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that was the beginning of everything that went wrong at this World Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n The reception follows South Korea president Lee Jae Myung calling for an investigation into the campaign in a strongly worded statement posted on X.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a former honorary professional football club chairman and a heartfelt Red Devil, I feel not just confusion but utter bewilderment at this unexpected outcome,\u201d he said in a statement via X.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce again, it has been proven that personnel decisions determine everything. If loyalty and factionalism are valued over competence and an incapable person is appointed as a leader, the outcome is as predictable as fire.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that such haphazard appointments\u2014failing to distinguish public from private and prioritising personal gain over public interest\u2014are possible stems from the inability or difficulty in monitoring, checking, and holding personnel decision-makers accountable.<\/p>\n \u201cThis failure to qualify for the World Cup finals, which has left the public feeling empty, appears to be a failure of organisation and personnel.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n