Ange Postecoglou on Celtic and Rangers dominating and Levein called out

The former Scotland boss said this week that he would lead the old team there himself if the opportunity arose, claiming that everyone would benefit from the move, and also called for both clubs to send £50m each season for the rest of the Scottish clubs to take part.

But while acknowledging his team’s dominance and the gap between Celtic and Rangers and the rest of the term, Postecoglou doesn’t think lowering the bar for the teams involved in the competition is the answer.

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“Well, how many championships have Bayern Munich won in a row at the moment?” Postecoglou said.

“Forever and one day there will be opinions about the game. It’s good theater, and it’s great to grab a bucket of popcorn and listen to it, but it’s not on my radar right now. I’m just not in that space.”

“I know what you’re saying but people are just in this moment. When was the last time Rangers and Celtic met in a Scottish Cup final? [It was 2002].

“That tells you something. It’s all this stuff at the moment because we’re controlling the competition. Whether it’s one team or the other, or two teams, it’s always the case now.

“In terms of the broader discussion about Scottish football, if the suggestion is that the best way to improve is to knock your highest level off within the game, I don’t believe it. If you want to raise standards, you’re trying to reach the highest level that’s already there. So, Try to build teams to achieve this rather than giving everyone a lower level.

“Dude, I’ve lived in Australia where there’s a salary cap, where there’s equality, and let me tell you, there’s no one in Scotland who could enjoy that one second of walking.”

Postecoglou points to his own example of winning the J-League with Yokohama F. Marinos in 2019 with the 13th largest budget in the 18-team league as evidence of what can be achieved.

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“It was the first time the club I’ve been with won in 15 years,” he said.

“I’m not saying it’s easy to do. In many cases it’s a really huge leap. But you’re either ambitious or not.

“If you want to improve on something, you don’t bring it to the lowest common denominator. You don’t really achieve anything.”

“People in this country are really passionate about football, really passionate about their football clubs, and I understand that.

“Just two years ago St Johnstone won two cups. You can take a broader view, see things in the perfect calm of the day, or just go with the hot topic of the day and go through it all as one.” My basic feeling – and that’s not just about Scottish football or football. Football in general, but life – I think it’s always better to be ambitious than any other way.”