Former Aberdeen and Dundee United manager Alex Smith believes Scottish football has lost the plot as the managerial merry-go-round spins ever faster.
Jim Goodwin is back in the dugout just five weeks after leaving Aberdeen and will face his former club with his new club Dundee United on Saturday.
Goodwin will be the third manager at Tannadice this season. The first, Jack Ross, lasted five league games. His successor Liam Fox, lasted five months.
The new United boss has less than three months to prove himself worthy of a longer-term deal at Tannadice with his hopes of being given the role permanently seemingly hinging on whether he can keep United in the Premiership.
Former Scottish League Managers Association chief Smith, who moved to Australia after retiring from his role as technical director of Falkirk in 2018, is saddened to see the lack of patience being shown in the game.
He said: “The game in Scotland has gone crazy. The managerial merry-go-round is unbelievable.
“It’s crazy what’s happening and I think the SFA should be thinking of a way to intervene to stop this.
“Should they put a financial penalty on a club taking in a young manager and then binning him after six or nine months?
“I know it’s extreme but we’re chasing people out of the game all over the place yet poor choices in boardrooms seem to be allowed to continue every season.”
Social media is not helping
Jim Goodwin is now a Scottish football Merry-go-round manager. https://t.co/65TqKnKEjq
— Matt G (@MattG95) March 1, 2023
Smith believes the rise of social media has not helped with directors throughout the country falling into the trap of being easily swayed by dissenting voices.
He said: “I look at the game now and I see clubs listening to every moan and complaint from social media.
“I understand impatience these days but we can’t have chairmen hiring a manager and four or five months later sacking him.
“Sadly now they are easily swayed into making decisions but no one seems to recognise they must have done their diligence before employing a manager.
“They’ve watched him at another club in most cases and interviewed him before giving him the job only to put him out the door at the first sign of trouble.
“The craziness of it all is unbelievable and the people involved have lost the plot.”
United might benefit from Goodwin’s tough time at Pittodrie
Smith is sad to see managers given a lack of time but he believes United might be the club to benefit from challenging period Goodwin had in charge at Pittodrie.
Keeping a struggling United team in the top flight will be a tall order but Smith, who led the Dons to a cup double in 1989-90 and was in charge at United from 2000 to 2002, believes Goodwin is in a strong position.
He said: “I read an article the other week about Aberdeen managers and how many there have been.
“I couldn’t believe there has been so many since I left. These days if you last longer than 18 months you’ve done well.
“Some people say Jim deserved the sack at Aberdeen.
“Others felt as I did that he needed time to come through those difficult games and he would be a better manager for the experience.
“Dundee United might get the benefit of his experience from Aberdeen now.
“He was quite successful at St Mirren and Alloa but couldn’t find consistency at Aberdeen by keeping the team in the top four.
“But he will know a lot about Dundee United having played them twice this season and it will give him an advantage about what he knows of Aberdeen.
“He will know the weaknesses in the Dons team and he might get off to a winning start which is enough to set Dundee United on their way to safety.
“He has nothing to lose and everything to gain. If it doesn’t happen he can say he didn’t have a lot of time and there weren’t many games.
“If he does do it then he rebuilds his reputation instantly. I wish him all the best, I hope he does well. He’s got a lot going for him.”
Clubs need to put a long-term plan in place – and stick to it
The Dons and United have been interlinked for more than 40 years and both clubs will celebrate significant milestones this year.
At Pittodrie the celebration of the Gothenburg Greats is a few months away. At Tannadice, their league winning team of 1983 is also being honoured this year.
Smith is sad to see how both clubs have struggled in recent years.
He said: “There may be a bit of logic in United’s appointment given the fact Jim was managing Aberdeen.
“Both clubs have come along a similar road in the last 50 years with success in the 1980s and competing against each other.
“They created a way of playing and had results in Scotland and in Europe but the last 20 years both have had a long dip with so many managers and they have completely stalled.
“Consistency of performance from the clubs has dipped and the continual change and lack of continuity hasn’t helped.
“Derek McInnes was in charge eight years and it was the best period Aberdeen have had in decades. It’s no coincidence a longer-term approach paid off.”
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