Stuart Armstrong

MARK Millar doesn't seem like the usual type of player you would see at one of the PFA Scotland's exit trials, the most recent of which will take place at Broadwood Stadium this Saturday. This, after all, is a man who got an impeccable grounding in the game with Celtic, where he showed enough promise to get a taste of exotic foreign travel in Hungary with Ujpest Dozsa. Even after a spell proving his worth in midfields across Scotland, mainly at aspiring clubs like Falkirk, Dundee United and Queen of the South, he is still only 29, an age usually said to be at the peak of a player's career. He is coming off a season where he won promotion back to the Championship at Livingston.

Yet here he is, playing the exit trial, because let's just say the contract offer which came his way wasn't exactly what he was expecting. Millar will surely get a club before the new season starts - this is now less than a month away - but he will consider part-time offers as well as full-time ones and his presence in Cumbernauld this Saturday should serve as a reminder that no-one is safe these days from the icy winds which blow through most manager's budgets at this time of year.

No wonder then that Millar feels his old Dundee United pal Stuart Armstrong is the perfect role model for the modern Scottish footballer. Not just because of the on-field ability and application which is set to make him a very rich man very soon. But because he was smart enough to arm himself with a law degree when he was coming through the ranks at Tannadice so he would have something to fall back on in any case.

“From the outside looking in, people think footballers live the high life - but that’s not the reality," said Millar. “There isn’t a lot of money in Scottish football, unless you are with the top teams. Some young players have that perception too. Realistically, they are just an average Joe like me. You need to work hard from a young age and also think about life after football.

“When I was a young player at Celtic, I thought I was set for life," he added. "I wasn’t. You need to think about the bigger picture and it took me a while to realise that. So that would be my advice to the younger players, make a start on another career outside football that you can fall back on. If I could back and change that, I would.

“Look at Stuart Armstrong. He is the perfect example. His football could set him up for life but he’s also got the degree to fall back on. Hats off to him for that. It’s different class and he’s the guy every young footballer should look up to. I know Stuart well from my time at United. You couldn’t meet a nicer guy and he’s been outstanding for Celtic. He proves that if you work hard on and off the pitch, you can do really well.

"But when I was at Celtic, we would be sent to college every Wednesday but most of us didn’t care about stuff like that. We’d go one week and then miss two. We’d then go back and miss three weeks. What did we do? Just stay in the house. At the time, we were all living the high life playing for Celtic - one of the biggest clubs in the world. We thought we had the world at our feet, we thought we we had everything. But in reality, we had nothing. We hadn’t done a s*** in the game at that point. We should have made the most of that chance at college."

Millar has some experience of part-time football, when he dropped down to work with Jim McInally at Peterhead. With a job interview lined up for this Friday, it is an avenue he could look at again, with Gary Bollan at Forfar Athletic thought to be interested.

“I haven’t signed for anyone yet so it was a good chance to do a week of training and then play in the game, to put myself out there," said Millar. "There was an offer on the table from Livingston but it wasn’t great for me and my family. I could go and do a job and be more comfortable instead of travelling up to Livingston every day. If it’s full-time, great. If it’s part-time and I need to get a job, that’s what I will do.

“Going forward, I think more players will look to take a job and play part-time," he added. "The prime example is Rory McAllister at Peterhead. His job and the wage he gets at Peterhead means he would never go full-time. You need to get security for your family. If you take a full-time deal, you could be out of work within a year."

 

Thought after his interview 10 days ago we might've seen some movement in terms of the new deal.

Sign him up!!

 

dont think he is back yet think the scotland and international players got until next tuesday to come back

 

He's still on Holiday until Monday.

 

He's actually back today.

 

Pics? How's his hair?

 

Stunning.

 

lovely flowing locks blowing in a north easterly direction with a 2mph wind

 

Aye.

 

I thought he signed a new deal?

 

Mr Luva luva!

 

Keep seeing this bumped hoping he's signed a Jim McLean type contract, c'mon tae * Celtic get it * sorted.

 

All in good time.

 

You better be right cunto.

 

He will sign a four year deal in the coming week. Source: My *.

 

Don't worry about new deal on the way soon.

 

If you are wrong you're getting sent on a mystery weekend with Venglos.

 

I'm not wrong.

 

I hope for your sake you aren't.