A final thought – on Willie Miller. I could never bring myself to criticise this immense man, the greatest and most loyal player by far in the club’s history, the man who was once justly described by Ferguson as the greatest penalty-box defender in the world.
Miller’s role as director of football, and his salary of around £150,000, are being questioned. But I’d point to the youngsters who are starting to come through, in particular Fraser Fyvie and Peter Pawlett among several others, who justify Willie’s emphasis on youth development. Fyvie’s long-term knee injury, incidentally, is a particularly grievous blow to the club.
People are baying for Willie’s departure, but there are other directors at the club who should be looking themselves. These current directors might also examine the record of two titanic men, Dick Donald and Chris Anderson. They should examine what the two greatest directors the club ever had actually did, and try to learn something. But then, even Dick and Chris took a long time to smash through the pervasive bleakness at Pittodrie, and they did so only temporarily.
