Alex McLeish tips Mark McGhee to be a success at Aberdeen
Alex McLeish says that Aberdeen boss Mark McGhee is capable of turning round the Scottish Premier League club's fortunes.
The Birmingham City manager was paying a visit to his former club, where he and McGhee were team-mates in the 1980s. The duo helped the Dons to claim two league championships, three Scottish Cups, the European Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup under
the stewardship of future Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson.
However, those glory days have all but vanished. McGhee took over as the manager of the club in 2009 and in his first season in charge could only guide the club to a ninth-place finish.
The Dons are struggling even more this term. They have won just three of their 13 SPL games so far and are sitting in 11th place, just one point clear of bottom side Hamilton Academical.
With more than a third of the season gone, relegation is becoming a real threat. However, McLeish has tipped former Motherwell boss McGhee to bounce back and help Aberdeen soar back up the league.
He told The Daily Record, "It saddens me to see Aberdeen in this state. Of course it does. But it's a challenge for Mark to make the team better and that's a test of character for any manager. But the men of the Ferguson era don't lack character and
we don't quit. I was glad Mark held on to his job after the recent speculation.
"I met Mark at a meeting of the League Managers Association in London a few months ago and he told me then about the difficulties he would face at the club this season. He wasn't putting forward excuses, so much as explaining to me that Aberdeen were in
a development phase. What I will say is I retain confidence in Mark to steady the ship and then steer Aberdeen in a different, more positive direction."
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