Charlie Adam set for shock Premier League job as former Rangers midfielder gets big break
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There’s nothing to make Rangers fans more aware of their own mortality than a host of ex-players turning to management and attempting to lead the next generation.
For many at Ibrox, it must feel like only yesterday since the likes of Russell Martin, David Healy, Charlie Adam and co were turning out in light blue.
Now, Martin has Premier League management on his coaching CV, albeit sacked by Southampton with The Saints at risk of destroying Derby County’s very unwanted points record. Healy has guided Linfield to the Northern Irish title on five occasions.
And while Charlie Adam’s managerial career is yet to really take flight – he was sacked after just a year in charge of Fleetwood Town following relegation to England’s fourth-tier – an opportunity knocks in the top-flight now for the one-time Rangers midfielder.
Former Rangers man Charlie Adam set for Everton role
According to Alan Nixon, via his official Patreon account, Adam has been lined up to form part of David Moyes’ coaching staff at Everton.
The master and his potential apprentice certainly go back a long way.
Adam lodged with the Moyes family when attempting to make his way at Ibrox around two decades ago. The pair remain close to this day, with Moyes’ brother – Kenny – acting as the 39-year-old’s agent.
Speaking on the Football Daily Podcast recently, meanwhile, Adam admitted that he had discussed with Moyes his next challenge just days before the Everton legend would seal an emotional return to his old Goodison Park stomping ground.
"I had a coffee with him on Friday before [Man City beat West Ham 4-1 on January 4th],” Adam said. "He's in a great place and whatever happens will happen."
At the time, Moyes was, to quote Adam, ‘not looking for a job’. It’s fair to say that changed pretty quickly. The veteran Scot pulled a dramatic 180 when his beloved Everton came calling, offering Sean Dyche’s replacement the chance to pick up where he left off prior to that doomed switch to Manchester United over a decade ago.
And it seems that, while Adam is yet to prove that he is cut out for a role in coaching, Moyes – who suffered a 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa on his homecoming this week – is keen to give the one-time Liverpool playmaker every chance while cutting his teeth in the high-pressure environment of a Premier League relegation battle.
Charlie Adam keen to learn from Walter Smith and Alex McLeish
“I've always wanted to be a manager,' Adam told the Daily Mail, looking to put the lessons he learned from some of the greatest figures in Scottish football to very good use. “I see myself as a leader and feel like I have the presence and personality to be a manager.
“Kenny Dalglish has that aura but I learned off every manager, whether it was Walter Smith or Alex McLeish.”
Adam also worked with the likes of Mark Hughes at Stoke City and the enigmatic Ian Holloway during that fabulous spell at Blackpool before winding down his playing career at Dundee.
“Mark Hughes was brilliant at speaking to people and delegating. Ian Holloway gave you the feeling you were the best player who ever walked,” Adam recalls. “When I went back to Dundee, the young manager James McPake was in his first job and it was fascinating to see his approach.
“You take small parts from everybody. I've been on the phone to Vincent Kompany at Burnley [now with Bayern Munich]. Mainly to try to get some players, but I've never been afraid of reaching out.”
For Adam, the personal connection has always mattered a great deal. And that long-standing relationship with David Moyes could now be the route he is looking for into the world of top-level management.
