Next Scotland Manager Odds: Brown And Ferguson In Duel To Replace Anxious Clarke
Scotland were booed off the pitch following a woeful performance in a home friendly against Iceland and football betting sites are starting to look at who could replace Steve Clarke as manager.
The evening got off to a bad start when goalkeeper Angus Gunn limped off with an injury just a few minutes into the game and his replacement Cieran Slicker went on to have a debut to forget.
The Ipswich shot-stopper gave the ball away just over a minute after coming on which led to the eighth-minute opener and although John Souttar equalised, the Scots were trailing again at half-time.
Poor defending from a corner saw Lewis Ferguson divert the ball past Slicker, who seven minutes into the second half allowed a powerful header from Victor Palsson to slip through his hands.
Scotland were relegated from the top tier of the Nations League in March following a two-legged play-off defeat by Greece and their latest setback at Hampden Park has further increased the pressure on Clarke.
Will the former Kilmarnock boss still be around for the start of Scotland's World Cup qualifying campaign which starts in September?
The 60-year-old’s contract runs until after next summer's World Cup, but Scotland’s recent shortcomings have led some to call for a change now.
We take a look at some of the candidates in the frame to replace him and the latest next Scotland manager odds.
Next Scotland Manager Odds
Manager | Odds | Probability |
Scott Brown | 7/5 | 41.7% |
Barry Ferguson | 6/4 | 40% |
Scot Gemmill | 2/1 | 33.3% |
Shaun Maloney | 9/4 | 30.8% |
Steven Naismith | 5/2 | 28.6% |
Gary Caldwell | 3/1 | 25% |
Gary McAllister | 4/1 | 20% |
Graham Alexander | 5/1 | 16.7% |
David Gray | 6/1 | 14.3% |
David Martindale | 7/1 | 12.5% |
Darren Ferguson | 10/1 | 9.1% |
David Moyes | 12/1 | 7.7% |
Brown In Old Firm Duel For Scotland Job
Scott Brown is the early 7/5 favourite on betting sites to lead the national team if the Scottish FA decides to part ways with Clarke.
Celtic legend Brown is just ahead of former Scotland team-mate Barry Ferguson, whose spell in interim charge of Rangers ended in May.
Brown's first foray into management came at English League One club Fleetwood, who finished 13th in his debut season in 2022/23, but he was sacked in September after taking just one point from his first six games in charge.
However, just under four months later Brown was back in Scotland as manager of Championship club Ayr United, who reached the play-offs on his watch only to lose to Partick in the quarter-finals.
Brown will certainly bring fight to the role and will not shy away from a challenging job, but will the hierarchy see it that way?
Ferguson Snapping At Brown's Heels
Former Rangers captain Ferguson spent the last three months in interim charge at Ibrox following the dismissal of Philippe Clement.
Ferguson won just five of his 11 Scottish Premiership games, but he led Gers to the quarter-finals of the Europa League which they lost to Athletic Bilbao.
The Rangers board decided that Ferguson was ultimately not the man to try to end Celtic's dominance of Scottish football next season and finally turned to Russell Martin as Clement's long-term replacement.
However, his experience at Ibrox has given the former Blackburn and Birmingham midfielder a taste for management and he would be thrilled to get the chance to lead his country for which he is priced at 6/4 with betting apps.
Gemmill A Safe Pair Of Hands
Scotland U21 manager Scot Gemmill is the third favourite at 2/1 to land the most senior role in the national set-up.
Having led the nation’s top youth side since 2016, he has a deep understanding of the Scottish football structure and would be a natural successor for many.
That said, Gemmill's youngsters lost their last two qualifiers for the European U21 Championship which starts this week.
Belgium's defeat by Hungary meant Scotland would have secured a play-off spot as runners-up in Group B with victory in Kazakhstan, but a 3-2 defeat ensured they missed out on the tournament in Slovakia.
Although highly regarded, Gemmill has been unable to halt a trend that has seen Scotland fail to qualify for the European finals for almost 30 years.
Maloney In The Frame
Shaun Maloney has coached in Scotland and England, but also in his favour is the fact he has international experience.
The former Celtic player was appointed one of Roberto Martinez's assistants in the Belgium national team from September 2018, a position he held for the delayed Euro 2020 tournament where they reached the quarter-finals.
Having left the Belgium set-up at the end of 2021, Maloney made his first steps on the managerial ladder at Hibs where he lasted just four months, but he spent more than two years at his former club Wigan.
There, he was unable to keep Wigan in the Championship after he replaced Kolo Toure as manager at the start of 2023, but he managed to retain the club's League One status despite an eight-point deduction in the following campaign.
Maloney looks an interesting option at 9/4 in the next Scotland manager odds.
Naismith Has International Experience
Steven Naismith, like Maloney, has experience of being a coach on the international stage, although in his favour is that it came with the Scotland national team.
The ex-Everton forward had a couple of positions at his former club Hearts where he was eventually appointed interim manager in April 2023 following the dismissal of Robbie Neilson.
Two month later, Naismith got the job on a permanent basis although his position was technical director because he lacked the Uefa coaching licence required for European competition.
Eventually, he was named head coach in September, but lasted just one year with Hearts, who were bottom of the Scottish Premiership with one point from the first six games of the 2024/25 season when he was sacked.
Naismith is available at 5/2 to be the next Scotland manager.
Caldwell Could Get Call
Former Hibs, Celtic and Wigan defender Gary Caldwell has a vast amount of coaching experience in England and Scotland, and deserves to be a contender for the national team at 3/1.
Caldwell cut his managerial teeth at Wigan where he experienced relegation to League One and promotion to the Championship in back-to-back seasons.
A disastrous spell at Chesterfield was followed by an 11-month spell at Partick, but he has been head coach at League One club Exeter since October 2022.
Elsewhere, Gary McAllister is available at 4/1. His most recent role was assistant to Steven Gerrard at Aston Villa, but he was head coach at Leeds under chairman Ken Bates 17 years ago.
Bradford's Graham Alexander (5/1), Hibs coach David Gray (6/1) and Livingston manager David Martindale (7/1) are all in the mix, along with Peterborough manager Darren Ferguson (10/1) and Everton boss David Moyes (12/1).
* Reminder: These are hypothetical odds provided by industry experts.
