FORMER Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou had an interesting near-miss with Huddersfield Town in the English Championship four years ago.

However, the move fell through and he remained in Japan for two more years before taking up the role at Celtic in June 2021. His tenure at Celtic was marked by significant success, including two Scottish Premiership titles, two Viaplay Cup wins and a Scottish Cup win to complete a treble in his second season.

David Webb, Huddersfield Town’s director of football, shared insights into the club’s conversations with Postecoglou. They had a couple of phone conversations, during which Webb was impressed by Postecoglou’s authenticity and his deep understanding of Huddersfield’s squad.

Webb appreciated Postecoglou’s straightforwardness and felt that his values and style of play would have been a great fit for the club.

However, due to some issues and the inability to move swiftly on the managerial appointment, Postecoglou’s potential move to Huddersfield Town fell through. At the time, he was based in Japan, and the delay in proceedings ultimately led to the opportunity slipping away.

As quoted by RecordSport, he said: “We had a couple of long-distance phone calls. I spoke to him and really liked him as a person.

“He was someone who I felt would have fit Huddersfield really well because of his values and I liked the way he played.

“I like authenticity and he was just himself. This is me, this is how I am, this is how I play, this is what I do. He’d done his homework on the Huddersfield squad. But where he was situated, we couldn’t move quick enough to get him over the line where we needed it to be.”

Thankfully, the move fell through, and he brought some amazing success to Celtic. Had he taken the job in England, it’s almost certain that he would never have managed Celtic.