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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Josh McKay

Neil Warnock reveals Hearts job opportunity as he opens up on love for Scotland

Neil Warnock admits he would love to manage a club in Scotland one day and he has revealed that he was once close to becoming the boss of Hearts.

The 74-year-old has managed 16 clubs in his footballing career which has earned him the record for the most matches managed in English professional football.

Warnock has never managed in Scotland, but he has revealed that he was once in the running at Hearts and he also applied for Aberdeen.

The veteran never heard back from the Dons, and he was not given the nod at Tynecastle as the club opted for Lithuanian Valdas Ivanauskas twice under former owner Vladimir Romanov. 

“I love Scotland - I’ve always wanted to manage in Scotland,” Warnock told BBC Scotland’s Sacked in the Morning podcast.

“I have never had any offers, although I think I was close to Hearts once, but they gave it to an idiot from Latvia! So they obviously didn’t want me.

“I applied for the Aberdeen job once and didn't even get a reply, which I thought was bad manners.

“I had a lad called Laurent D’Jaffo playing up there and I asked him what it was like and he said ‘gaffer, yes come, but it is the only place I’ve ever known where the seagulls don’t land - it’s that cold!”

Warnock, who kept Huddersfield Town in the Championship last season after coming out of retirement, says his Argyll holiday home has helped him through some difficult times in his career. 

He was sacked by the Terriers in the middle of September which may have been slightly surprising as he signed a one-year deal in the summer after helping the club maintain their Championship status.

He added: “I’ve got bricks in the wall at Greenock Morton because that’s our local team as we have a house at Dunoon.

“My wife Sharon’s grandparents came from Dunoon, so from the 90s we’ve gone up there. It's so peaceful.

“We play golf at a course called Blairmore and Strone. It’s beautiful and so relaxing - and it's helped me in my career. I’ve been able to go up there at different times, during international breaks, and clear my mind.”

Warnock revealed a lot on the podcast with the new St Johnstone manager Craig Levein and Amy Irons, including his skills as a chiropodist.

The popular character expects to be back in a job after “a nice Christmas” because he is enjoying his new routine of only working from February until the end of the season.

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