McClair leaves Scottish FA role after failing to make an impact

Brian McClair has left his role as the Scottish Football Association's performance director.

The former Celtic and Manchester United striker took up the role in June last year but says he is stepping down after failing to make "a significant difference" to Scotland's production line of talent.

The SFA said in a statement it had accepted his decision after admitting McClair - who had previously overseen Manchester United's youth academy - had struggled to get to grips with the complexities of the job.

In a statement, the governing body said his 13-month tenure had come to an end "by mutual consent".

McClair succeeded Dutchman Mark Wotte and was tasked with building a framework that would allow the next generation of Scottish internationalists to flourish.

When news of his appointment was announced in February last year, SFA chief executive Stewart Regan paid tribute to his work at Old Trafford, saying he had "been at the cutting edge of coaching evolution, analysis and performance management".

However, the Hampden boss was forced to admit McClair had not been able to make the same impact in his new job after finding himself bogged down by lengthy discussions on the direction the SFA should be taking youth development.

He said: "I would like to thank Brian for his time as performance director. I am really disappointed that we have parted company after a year, but the complexities of the role cannot be overestimated.

"While his experience of developing talent over a sustained period of time at Manchester United was a major attribute, being performance director requires a different style of leadership and focus.

"As performance director, he found himself spending more time lobbying and presenting in the boardroom. It became apparent that this was neither a comfortable nor tenable situation in the long term.

"I would like to reiterate my thanks to Brian for his efforts and wish him the best of luck in the future."

The SFA say a working group set up to take talent development forward will remain in place under the leadership of interim chair Alistair Gray.

But McClair expressed regret that he could not make more of an impact.

He said: "I can confirm that I will leave my position as performance director. I am deeply disappointed that I couldn't make a significant difference, but I would like to thank my staff for the help they have given me and the board for the opportunity.

"I would also like to wish my successor all the best in the future in their efforts to develop the environment for the young talent that Scotland deserves."