Mackay takes interim charge for Scotland National team

Scottish FA performance director Malky Mackay is to take interim charge of the Scotland team, following Gordon Strachan’s departure on Thursday.

The former Watford, Cardiff and Wigan manager will combine both jobs and take the team for the 9 November friendly against the Netherlands at Pittodrie.

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Strachan’s time as Scotland manager ended by “mutual consent” after missing out on a World Cup play-off place.

Strachan, 60, had been in charge of the national side since January 2013.

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Former Scotland defender Mackay, who also played for Celtic and Norwich, was appointed to his current role in December last year, succeeding Brian McClair.

On announcing Mackay’s interim appointment and the upcoming friendly, SFA chief executive Stewart Regan said it was “too premature to discuss” Strachan’s long-term successor.

“Recruitment phase begins next week,” he said. “It’s difficult to put a timescale on replacement.

“We believe we can compete [financially] to get the right person for the manager’s job.

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“We want someone capable of getting to Euro 2020.

“We’ll cast our net far and wide, nationality is not an issue – want best person for the job.

“Ultimately we are in a result business. We had a manager in place for five years coming up. He’d had two campaigns. When the board met to discuss Gordon’s position after the defeats to England and Slovakia [in 2016], we backed the manager, but we backed the manager on the proviso that we made the [World Cup] play-offs.

“We didn’t reach the play-offs and we felt it was time for a new coach to give us a new impetus with emerging talent coming through the Scottish game and give us a real chance to make Euro 2020.”

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