Nacho Novo has admitted that he has applied to become a coach at Rangers.
Rangers Nacho Novo in action
Rangers fan favourite Nacho Novo has told the Glasgow Evening Times that he is ‘disappointed’ to have not been considered for a coaching role at Ibrox.
The Gers landed Pedro Caixinha as their new manager earlier this month, and whilst he has brought three coaches with him in Helder Baptista, Pedro Malta and Jose Belman, one position on his staff remains open.
The Portuguese manager wants to bring in a ‘local coach’ to help him; somebody with connections to Rangers and a knowledge of Scottish football, driven towards aiding Caixinha’s transition into the job.
So far, five ex-Rangers players have held talks over taking that job – Barry Ferguson, John Brown, Peter Lovenkrands, Alex Rae and Jonatan Johansson – with an appointment expected before this weekend’s game against Motherwell.
It remains to be seen whether any more former Rangers players are given late consideration for the job, but one man is unhappy that he hasn’t been given an interview for the position.
Spaniard Nacho Novo became something of a cult hero at Ibrox following a 2004 move from Dundee, as he hit 73 goals in 255 games for the club, including 25 goals in his debut season at Ibrox.
Even since leaving Rangers in 2010, Novo has remained a popular figure amongst Rangers fans, and he has told the Glasgow Evening Times that he has submitted an application to become the ‘local coach’ Caixinha wants.
New Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha poses with a scarf
However, Novo says he hasn’t had any response from Rangers, and with no meetings planned, the 38-year-old figures that Rangers believe he isn’t an experienced enough coach, much to his disappointment.
“I have not got an interview or anything. To be fair, there are many comments and things going on,” said Novo. “It is not my decision. Yes, I sent in a CV but apart from that I don’t know what is happening. It is this opportunity to coach. The new manager is the one who is going to need to sort out everything, how they train, how they play. You are really just there to help the manager. I don’t have experience [as a coach]. I have got experience of training but more with kids and that is something I enjoyed.”
“I don’t really want to talk about some parts. I am disappointed about certain things, but not about the job. It is a big job and people like Fergie and Alex Rae have more experience, which is understandable. My focus was to come back into the youths, that is the start that I wanted. Obviously it has never happened. I just need to keep working and we will see what happens in the future. Just now, it is something I really want to do. I have got other things to prove in terms of experience but I have been with a lot of managers.”
“You always get experience and you always see things differently. As a player, I always had hunger and I still do. I am thinking that if a job comes up I will give a lot of my time. I want the best job I can. It is all down to the manager at the end of the day and what he thinks and what he wants. And for Barry, Alex or whoever it interviewed, how they feel about the manager and his opinions. I don’t know because everyone is different,” he added.
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