I’ve studied Celtic bosses Rodgers, Lennon and Strachan – now it’s time to be my own man at Fleetwood says Scott Brown
SCOTT BROWN has played under some experienced managers during his playing days.
During his 14-year Celtic career, he worked under Gordon Strachan, Neil Lennon, Tony Mowbray, Ronny Deila and Brendan Rodgers.
The former Hoops skipper then left the club for Aberdeen in May last year, just a month before Ange Postecoglou arrived at Parkhead.
After a season at the Dons as player coach, he then hung up his boots and had a management gig on his mind.
Brown took over his first managerial role at Fleetwood in May, just a week after he announced his retirement
And since he arrived, he's raided Premiership clubs for players as he looks to untap the Scottish market.
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Former Hibs teammate and Rangers rival Steven Whitakker has also joined him as his assistant, while appointing former Dunfermline stopper Owain Fon Williams as his goalkeeping coach.
Now he's set to embark on his first competitive match against Port Vale tomorrow as they begin their League One campaign.
And Brown has revealed he called Rodgers, Strachan and Lennon before he took over the job as he wanted advice from the famous Hoops trio.
All of them wondered if he still had another season in him but Brown knew the time was right.
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He said: "I was done and dusted.
"I’ve carried on talking to (the three bosses) since coming in. Wee Strachan, what a guy. It’s important to take small bits from all of them.
"There will be different facets of their training I impress on to the lads and put my own twist on. Don’t go in and copy a manager. We are different people with different mannerisms.
"It’s different to Celtic here, too. We want young players doing well here, knowing they can succeed and then be sold on to a bigger club. That’s what we need to do to survive."
Brown was impressed by owner Andy Piley's pitch to him as he rallied them to bounce back from a disappointing 20th-placed finish last season.
And the Celtic legend admitted while he has high standards of his players to reach this goal, he insists they all need to be their own men and he can't expect them to follow in his footsteps.
He laughed: "I’ve not lost my head yet!"
"I’m chilled but want standards. I’m not saying everybody has to be like me, because that doesn’t work, but if people don’t hit standards then fine, someone else will come in.
"There are small things I wanted as a player — to win every small game, win the races, sharpest over a short distance. They’ve got that drive and that is how you pull the team behind you.
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"A lot of people wrote me off. I just kept coming back in and showing I was fitter than everyone else. It’s mind over matter.
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"This has been a sharp learning curve here because I retired and two days later got the job. I couldn’t have got a better opportunity. The training facilities are fantastic, right up there with Aberdeen and Celtic. I’ve been backed this summer. Fleetwood: why not?"
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