Shock favourite emerges to replace Steve Clarke as Scotland manager

A surprise contender has emerged as the 5/2 favourite to succeed Steve Clarke as the next Scotland manager, overtaking David Moyes, Alex Neil and Martin O'Neill in the overall standings.

Last week, Clarke resigned as Scotland's head coach following an underwhelming campaign at this summer's World Cup.

The Tartan Army recorded a 1-0 win over Haiti in their opening Group C match in Boston but after falling to defeats against Morocco and Brazil, they relied on other results to go through to the last 32.

After a nervy wait, they were officially knocked out of the World Cup after being unable to finish the group stage as one of the eight best third-placed teams.

A short time later, the Scottish FA announced Clarke's departure in a statement.

"The most emotional part of this goodbye is for my players, without whom we wouldn't have had any of the memories that we've accumulated from 2019 until now," said Clarke, who led the country to two European Championships before and a World Cup.

"They deserve all the praise and adulation that they receive and it was truly an honour to be called their gaffer. Thanks for having me and good luck to my successor."

Steve Clarke resigned following Scotland's World Cup campaign. Image credit: Getty

So, who will be Clarke's successor? Ange Postecoglou is currently the 5/2 favourite to take the job.

Of course, Postecoglou enjoyed a successful two-year spell at Celtic, where he lifted two Scottish Premierships, two Scottish League Cups and a Scottish Cup before leaving to join Tottenham in 2023.

The 60-year-old has been out of work since his sacking by Nottingham Forest in October last year but bookies William Hill have installed him as the favourite ahead of David Moyes, who was the early frontrunner.

A spokesperson for William Hill said: “With Steve Clarke stepping down after seven years as Scotland boss, we make Ange Postecoglou the early 5/2 favourite to replace Clarke.

“Postecoglou won five trophies during his two years at Celtic, and has international experience with his native Australia, managing the Socceroos in Brazil in 2014.

“Behind Postecoglou in the market are Scottish pair David Moyes and Alex Neil (both 5/1) with Martin O’Neill and Kasper Hjulmand (both 7/1) rounding out the leading candidates.”

Roberto Martinez tipped to become Scotland manager

Since the departure of Clarke, a host of names have been linked with the Scotland job, including Roberto Martinez, who is expected to step down as Portugal manager after this summer's World Cup.

Pat Nevin, a former Scotland international, believes Martinez would be an interesting appointment.

“It’s a bit about timing sometimes, isn’t it? There was a time where things weren’t going well for David Moyes at West Ham, that could have been the perfect time," he told BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast.

“He would have been the perfect man. I don’t think there were many people who would have said anything other than Moyes would be really great. But that’s not happening now. He’s doing really well at Everton and that’s not going to happen now.

“When Robbie Martinez finishes with Portugal, he might be an interesting one as well. But trying to get managers that have been at the absolute top level to look at Scotland and look at what it’s like and what happens when you lose a few games and knowing that there’s a rebuild needed, that’s tough."