EXCLUSIVE: Ally McCoist on Silva at Rangers and Postecoglou's future
Q: "Fabio Silva joined Rangers on loan from Wolves in January. Have you been impressed by him this season?"
A: "Yes, I genuinely have. He's given us a lot of energy. We all know the Rangers-supporters, the one thing they appreciate is a 100% level of commitment and effort from the players. He has certainly done that. In some of the games I think he's been excellent.
"The away game at Benfica in particular, was the best game he has played for the club, I think. But while he has done well, I believe he will do better. And I think there is more goals to come."
"Can you see him succeeding in the Premier League?"
"He is definitely good enough, but I think he will enjoy the period away from Wolves at this moment in time. He'll be enjoying the slightly less pressure but also the fresh challenge with Rangers and Celtic battling for the title. When he gains more experience, he could be a success in the top flight in England."
"Speaking of England, were you surprised with how Steven Gerrard struggled when he went to Aston Villa?"
"I really was because he did terrifically well in his final season when Rangers won the league. He obviously felt it was the right time for him to move down to England. I am just wondering, given the benefit of hindsight, and similar to Silva, whether Gerrard maybe should have given it another year at Rangers.
It's a massive club, they play in Europe every year. That might have prepared him better, because he is still very, very young in his managerial and coaching career."
"You followed Ange Postecoglou, when he was at Celtic. Has his impact at Spurs surprised you?"
"Yes and no because what's surprised me is the extent as to how quickly he has transformed the club and the fan base. I always felt that he would do well, and I still think that will be the case, but I didn't see him making the immediate impact he has done.
"He has effectively transformed the way the team is playing and the way that the supporters are watching the team, because it was a completely different style of play. I think the vast majority of them are really enjoying his style and enjoying the way his team play. But, again, I didn't expect the dramatic turnaround, but he is a breath of fresh air."
"Is the hype around him real?"
"Oh, he is the real deal. I spoke to him on a few occasions when he was up here at Celtic and what you see is what you get. That is all you can ask for you. He is not going to pull the wool over your eyes he is not going to tell you something just for the sake of it.
"He is very straightforward, very honest, very direct in both his approach and the way he deals with people and I don't see that changing. I genuinely don't think he suffers fools gladly, whether it is players or guys like us in the media and there is something refreshing about it."
"There are some big jobs open this summer, can he coach a team at an even higher level?"
"Well, I have heard one or two people talk about him for the Liverpool job. Let us be honest about it, Spurs should be lifting more trophies than they have done in years gone by. I know they reached the Champions League final not so long ago against Liverpool.
"They also lost a League Cup-final against Manchester City but they have underachieved massively in terms of trophies and I would genuinely like to see Postecoglou stay there with his style of play and win a trophy with Spurs. Then he can perhaps move on to the next chapter of his life."
