Alex McLeish has told Steven Gerrard that he’ll have to buy a whole new team!
The Scotland boss took time out from preparing to face Mexico to think about matters Ibrox and the squad that he inherited from Dick Advocaat.
With tax cheating on an industrial scale well underway McLeish was able to work with half a dozen Dutch internationalists, some Scots and £12m hit-man Tore Andre Flo.
Gerrard will be lucky if he gets half of the fee paid for Flo to work with as he attempts to take the title from Celtic using the flops that have finished third in successive seasons without even reaching a cup final.
Reflecting on the squad he inherited in December 2001 he told the Daily Record: “They were just a bit out of kilter and some of them needed an arm thrown around them. I got them playing again by using a wee bit of man-management.
“I couldn’t tell Arthur Numan or Ronald de Boer what to do with a ball. They just needed a bit of a cuddle and that’s what I gave them.
“There are some similarities in the sense Steven will have to get more out of players already there but I also believe he has to build a whole new team. That’s something I never had to do.
“Man-management is still such a huge part of football and I was good at that aspect. Gerrard will be too and his sheer presence around the place will command instant respect.
“He will also be hoping it drives up standards. It’s still not enough though because you need the players to mount a challenge.”
With pre-season training a fortnight away Sevco have only added Scott Arfield and Allan McGregor to last season’s squad.
Moves to sign Martin Skrtel and Connor Goldson have failed due to the lack of cash while Dave King concentrates on firing out conspiracy statements.