Scott Arfield has revealed that Michael Beale was one of the first people he spoke to before accepting the player-manager role at East Fife, and his former Rangers coach was delighted for him because he understands Scottish football at all levels.
Arfield was appointed player-manager of the Methil club, returning to football after a brief interim spell in charge of Livingston last season. He made clear after leaving Falkirk midway through last season that he wanted to move into management, and he has now secured his first outright job, replacing Dick Campbell at Bayview.
Beale's Reaction to Arfield's New Role
The 38-year-old was signed by Rangers in 2018 and got to know Beale, who was then one of Steven Gerrard's assistants and later managed Arfield at Ibrox. Beale is now manager of Zulte Waregem in Belgium, and Arfield said he was one of the first people he rang for guidance before taking the job.
Arfield said: "Mick was absolutely delighted when I phoned him. He knows you cannot just go in at the top. There are so many players who have gone from my position or even higher and there are very few players who can go straight in."
Learning from Experience
He added: "Look at Steven Gerrard, one of the most iconic footballers there's been. He had to go into an academy (coaching at Liverpool), and is obviously willing to go into an academy, but is actually sitting there looking at kids progressing."
"You get that experience and you can come up to win a league in Scotland with the help of someone like Mick. He was delighted because he completely and utterly understands Scottish football now at all levels. He knows it is a great situation. I think I am one of the first to get into management from that core group, so he is delighted to see it happen."
Advice from John Hughes
Arfield also admitted he has spoken in depth to John Hughes, who gave him his debut at Falkirk in 2007, and received some pearls of wisdom.
He said: "I have spoken to previous managers. The one I have spoken to the most and as recently as last night is John Hughes. He has worked in part-time football before so he knows everything about it. I have known him since I was 15 and he has been giving me great pointers."
"But Michael Beale is definitely another one. He was the first person I spoke to when I got the job at Livingston. He is the same as John. He worked in academy football at Liverpool and Chelsea. He gave me an analysis."
