For reasons best known to himself Andy Burke wanted to use today’s media conference to discuss with Ange Postecoglou a match that was played last night involving two different clubs.
Two days before a match that could effectively settle this season’s Premiership title the BBC reporter had nothing to ask the Celtic manager about himself or his squad of players.
There is the obvious Kyogo Furuhashi or Giorgos Giakoumakis question, where best to play Daizen Maeda, how has Tony Ralston stood in for Josip Juranovic, will Matt O’Riley or Tom Rogic be more effective on Sunday?
He could even have asked about the referee following Bobby Madden’s display in the last Glasgow derby or the impact of playing a close rival three times over four weeks.
Instead Burke wanted to ask Postecoglou about a club that BBC Scotland won’t cover directly, picking up on other media reports and applying their own interpretation on.
3 minutes 50 seconds
Andy Burke (BBC): Hi Ange, Rangers have obviously gone very deep in the Europe League, I just wondered what you have made of their run, they’re obviously demonstrating that there is no reason that Scottish clubs can’t make their mark in Europe and does it maybe give you a taste for next season of getting back involved and making your own mark
AP: Yeah, I think Scottish clubs including this one have made their mark in Europe before. I don’t think that we’ve learned anything new this year. Yeah, Rangers have did very well, Giovanni I think has did a great job in getting them to the semi-final.
I guess from their perspective, after last night they are still in the tie. An opportunity to get to a final which is great. Yeah, I think, that if you want evidence of how well Scottish clubs can do in Europe there’s a trophy that I can show you just down the road here mate.
AB: (very nervous laughs) Em, just going back to the award nominations, you mentioned, as you always do when you get the monthly award that it is a collective from the coaches and everyone involved. Just a word on the likes of John (Kennedy) and Gavin (Strachan), things weren’t going well last season, I think maybe many fans would have been looking for a full clear-out given that things didn’t go so well but these guys have clearly hung around and clearly bought in to what you’ve been trying to do at the club
AP: Yeah, I don’t think it was a case of them hanging around, I was given an option of sort of bringing my own people in, I’ve always felt with these sort of things that you’ve got to assess the totality of things.
Postecoglou has answered that issue many times, he doesn’t need his own network around him, if coaches are competent he is happy to work with them, influence them and pick up on issues that they bring up with their superior local knowledge.
If Burke was looking for the Celtic manager to praise his city rivals he was incredibly naïve, Postecoglou knows the city with his full focus on the club that pays his wages.
They never learn now maybe this nugget will put away his crayons.