TOTAL RETHINK

Mixu Paatelainen wasn’t the attention-grabbing appointment of Kilmarnock fans’ dreams. At least, not at first.

In the tense atmosphere of May 2010’s relegation-deciding finale, fists clenched as a late chance fell to Ryan Flynn. Was this the moment that Kilmarnock succumbed, after several seasons of toil?

And exhale. Seven thousand home supporters relieved as the opportunity is spurned. Killie live to fight another day, Falkirk taking the unwanted prize of a place in Division One. However, with interim boss Jimmy Calderwood’s imminent departure as a result of his concerns over future player budget, reasons for optimism were like goals during the season itself – hard to find.

Cut to our unlikely hero, Mixu Paatelainen, shades on, meandering along Nice’s Promenade des Anglais. From shorts and flip flops in France to a photo call in the Frank Beattie Stand. Football moves fast sometimes.

For the ubiquitous topflight presence that was Kilmarnock – 17 years and counting in the elite – things had gone decidedly stale under the long-serving Jim Jefferies. A lack of creativity and goals was the tale of 2009/10, the weary-legged conclusion to his reign. Indeed, the three months of November to January saw only one win and eight scored, four of which came in one match as performances and results temporarily improved under the newly appointed Jimmy Calderwood.

But last day survival meant that the beleaguered squad had another chance. At least, some of them did. But was the poor season just concluded a factor in the decision-making process for the gregarious Fin?

“It didn’t come into my thinking at all. The Chairman, Michael Johnston, phoned me. I was walking down the Boulevard and the phone went. It came out of the blue, to be honest. We agreed that I would come to Rugby Park and have a chat about the whole situation, personalities, and stuff like that. Everything went well. It was great.

“Obviously, before I came to Rugby Park, I studied, I watched a few games from the previous season. That season didn’t go according to plan although, thankfully, Killie survived and stayed in the Premier League.

“It was also an interesting period because, after that season, a lot of players were out of contract. There were eleven established first team players under contract plus two that were promoted from the under-19s. I immediately felt that this is a fantastic opportunity to bring in the players that would suit my playing style.”

For someone who, in 2010, was arguably still best known as a big bustling striker, rather than a forward-thinking tactician, where did the inspiration for his much-lauded Kilmarnock style come from?

“I’d spent that year, after Hibs, studying the game. I travelled all across Europe. And not only top clubs. Using my contacts, whenever I heard there’s a manager or head coach who put emphasis on sports science, fantastic tactical, attacking play, set plays, you name it, many aspects of the game, I wanted to go and visit the club and watch the training sessions and talk to the coaches about their philosophy and how they believe that brings them success. I used that year to learn and find my philosophy.

“When I was at Hibs, I didn’t have a clarity in my mind how I wanted to play. It was very early in my career: it was only a few years that I had been a head coach. I had numerous discussions with my backroom staff, and they were always saying, ‘no, no, no, you can’t do too much tactics because the players can’t take that’. ‘Players get tired’, and all that. But I visited many top, top footballing countries and top coaches and I decided that I was going to go for tactics the majority of the time.

“I also realised - obviously, I was lucky enough to have a playing career and be a player until I was 38 - that players need a ‘mental holiday’ during the training session if it gets too heavy in terms of tactics and tactics and shaping. You can do the tactical work in many ways so that it’s not boring and it’s not just standing and shaping. Hiding it, if you like, but making sure that every player understands one hundred percent clearly what their role is in a team, what are their jobs, and they practice. For me, it is very important: the players must practice every day, in training sessions, what they do in the match. And sometimes I think that that is forgotten.”

Those privileged to have followed the club during the season of artistry might well have wondered, initially, if the ambitious blueprint would be realised in practice: Killie sat bottom of the table in October. Even with the recruitment of some surprise hits, and the rejuvenation of more familiar faces, it took time. But a ruthless, bamboozling dismantling of Hearts in Edinburgh – the first of three successive three-nil victories – signalled the start of six joyous months.

For many Killie fans, 2010/11 was about the incomparable Alexei Eremenko - Ayrshire the latest stop on his football equivalent of cross-Europe Interrailing - but the platform was established during his manager’s own voyage of discovery.

Alas, by April 2011 it was all over. Mixu - soon to be named Manager of the Year - had excelled, and now came the seemingly inevitable dream offer: to manage his national team.

“When the Finland job was put in front of me, it was impossible to refuse that. There was nothing wrong with Kilmarnock. I wasn’t seeking to get elsewhere. It was a pity it finished after that one season. I’ve often wondered, if I’d stayed longer, and had a chance to really crate a legacy.”

Sometimes opportunities come up that you just can’t decline?

“It’s funny for me to say but, unfortunately, yes.”

Words by Gordon Gillen

This article first appeared in Issue 7 of the Kilmarnock Football Club official magazine of February 2022.