Ally McCoist says sorry to former Celtic star as ex-Hoops man set up with lucrative Pep Guardiola challenge
The former Celtic man had eyes on the draw being overseen by a Rangers favourite.
Ally McCoist has apologised to a former Celtic player - after the Rangers icon’s involvement in an FA Cup draw that’s landed the ex-Hoops man a chance to tussle with Pep Guardiola.
Exeter City will face Manchester City away in the prestigious knockout tournament south of the border. They are managed by former Celtic player Gary Caldwell and they defeated Wycombe Wanderers 4-0 to reach the next round of the tournament when Premier League sides get involved. Caldwell - who won two titles at Celtic - has been Grecians boss since 2022 and Rangers hero McCoist was one of those involved in his side’s big moment.
The draw had several former stars involved in the third round draw and Chelsea hero Joe Cole pulled Manchester City out the hat as the home team. Tottenham favourite Peter Crouch then picked Caldwell’s Exeter, with Rangers icon McCoist helping oversee proceedings. He then joked ‘sorry about that Gary’ after the ex-Celtic man was handed a dream draw on the pitch, and off it, Caldwell knows how big a difference it will make. The tie will be played on the weekend of January 10th next year.
Exeter City vs Manchester City FA Cup draw reaction
He said: “Everyone was ecstatic. It will be a huge day for the football club and one everyone to look forward to. It is great from the financial point of view but I want to look at it as a football game as well, the excitement of coming up against the best players in the world.
“One of the best managers of all time, and that should be really exciting for the players and supports to look forward to, and then the finances are just the icing on the cake. I’m sure all players and staff will be looking forward to it and it’s so exciting for the fans, so we hope to see as many Grecians as possible in Manchester.”
It comes amid financial problems at Exeter, who are looking at redundancies after cash issues caused by overspending last season. Caldwell told BBC Devon this month: "There is a lot of noise, but we have to bring the positivity by performing on the pitch and by winning games of football. I think as footballers, or the football department, we have to sit in that bubble and stay away from all of that, focus on process and what we need to do to be the best we can be, to be ready to win games. I can honestly say I haven't noticed a difference in anyone. The work ethic of everyone on the staff and the players has been incredible from day one at this football club and still remains that today.
What financial issues are Exeter City having?
"That's what we have to focus on. We have to focus on doing our job, winning games of football and keeping the positivity in the club. That doesn't mean to say we can't sign anyone. That means we have to be clever, smart and do something with the squad to find ways to maybe change whatever we feel like we need to change to be successful.
"The club has always tried to support me in transfer windows and increased every window up until the summer. But even when we've done that it's been difficult. I remember back to January where we were on the really bad run, when we went 13 games without winning. It was a really difficult winter period and the January we had was really successful, but we had some money in that window - Carlisle blew us out the water with what they did in that window and they got relegated.
"I remember saying at the time to the board members that spending money doesn't guarantee you get success - it gives you more opportunity and more choices, but it doesn't guarantee success. We had money, but nowhere near what other teams around us at that time had, and we spent it wisely and we had a really successful period.
"So again, whatever happens in January, it's about us being creative, innovative and finding ways to increase the quality within the group, increase the competition. But also improve the group that we have, and I think we've always done that really well in my time here and we'll continue to try to do that."