Robbie Neilson interested in THREE vacant SPFL manager jobs as ex-Hearts boss says ‘it's just about making sure it fits'
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ROBBIE NEILSON wants a quick return to Scottish football after his American adventure was cut short.
The former Hearts, Dundee United and MK Dons boss came home last month after being sacked following an 18-month spell with second-tier outfit Tampa Bay Rowdies.
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Derek McGregor with Robbie Neilson
Credit: Willie Vass
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Neilson was last in Scottish football with Hearts
Credit: Willie Vass
Neilson, talking exclusively to SunSport's YouTube One-on-One podcast, is hungry for a new opportunity.
And he's keeping a close eye on the vacancies at Dundee, Motherwell and Partick Thistle.
Asked if they were positions of interest, the 44-year-old said: 'Yes, definitely.
'I really missed the intensity of the Scottish game.
'When you've been out of it for a while you want to get back into it. So all these clubs would be very interesting.
'It's just making sure it's a fit. Do they see something in me they want, and vice versa.
'I'll see how it goes in the next couple of weeks. At this time I'm open to anything.
'I've got plenty to offer my next job. I've had promotions, title wins, cup finals and European football. I took the Tampa Bay Rowdies job for a change.
'I'd obviously been in Scotland and England all of my career, so I wanted something different and it was a great opportunity.
'I thought I could go and experience a different culture, a different style of football, a different lifestyle.
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'It was a great experience, cut short a bit as I was only there for 18 months. But all in all, it was something that I really valued and it's helped make me a better coach.
'What I really missed was the intensity of the game here.
'Everything there is more about the product you put on the pitch. Results weren't a massive thing.
'Whereas here, it's the No 1 sport.
'That intensity before the game, that's what I started to really miss.
'Getting back to that environment is something I'm looking forward to.'
Neilson insisted he had no problems dealing with the sack from Hearts in 2023 which abruptly ended his second spell in charge.
A 2006 Scottish Cup winner with the club as a player, he was axed after missing out on third spot to Aberdeen.
But the three-time Championship title winner admits it was probably the right decision for both parties.
He added: 'To be honest, it's part and parcel of the game.
'When I left MK Dons, that was the first time it had happened to me and it was really difficult. The second time, it's part of the game.
'I spoke to a lot of managers about it, like Alex Smith and Craig Levein, and you have to get used to it.
'If you can go somewhere for two or three years you've done really well.
'It had come to that point where we were both drifting, me as a coach and them as a club. It was probably the right thing to do.
'But you learn every time you come out of a job.
'You want to leave a club in a better place than when you took over and the majority of clubs I've been at I've managed to do that.'
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