Norwich boss Alex Neil, the fiery Scot with a ‘hairdryer’ temper, could bring a touch of Sir Alex Ferguson back to the Premier League

Sam Cunningham for the Daily Mail

Published:
21:30 GMT, 23 May 2015

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Updated:
00:40 GMT, 24 May 2015

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There were whispers around Norwich’s training ground and a few questioning glances exchanged when Alex Neil was appointed manager in January.

Some of the players are the same age as this 33-year-old who had just joined from Scottish Premiership side Hamilton Academical, for a start. Many had no idea who this short, stocky Scot with a fresh face and balding head was. They soon found out.

Neil’s heroics in Scotland have made him a household name north of the border, but down south he was known only for playing spells at Barnsley and Mansfield in his early twenties.

Alex Neil was relatively unknown in England when the Scot was appointed Norwich manager in January

The Canaries face Middlesbrough in Monday’s Championship play-off final for a place in the Premier League

When his wife and kids, still living in Scotland, came to Carrow Road to watch the Middlesbrough game last month, they were refused entry by security who did not recognise them as the manager’s family. Norwich’s head of press had to be swiftly summoned.

But 16 wins in 24 games have propelled the East Anglian club to the brink of the Barclays Premier League and only Middlesbrough in the Championship play-off final at Wembley tomorrow stand in their way. Everyone is starting to take notice of Neil now.

He is softly spoken, but rules by explosion, with a history of fiery temperament — just ask Dumbarton winger Mark Gilhaney, who he head-butted in a game last year — and in an age when many pussyfoot around millionaire football players, Neil tells them how it is.

‘A couple of times on the pitch he shouted, then a couple of times he’ll bring it back and keep it in-house in the dressing room,’ said Nathan Redmond, the England Under 21 winger who has thrived under Neil.

England Under 21 winger Nathan Redmond has thrived under Neil’s stewardship at Carrow Road

Norwich captain Russell Martin says Neil’s preparations mean players know exactly what is needed

Norwich captain Russell Martin added: ‘His analysis of teams before the game and statistics and details means we go into games knowing exactly what we have to do. And if you don’t do it, you soon know on a Monday morning.’

Neil may not have much call for a hairdryer any more, but he is not afraid to deliver one in the dressing room if players are not pulling their weight. Yet far from driving players away, he somehow manages to walk the tightrope between firm and fair.

‘He is a deep thinker and very observant of players and their feelings,’ said Hamilton goalkeeper Michael McGovern.

It may be a little early to compare, but there are traces of Sir Alex Ferguson about his approach. There is certainly room for another great Scot in the Premier League — while they once made up a third of top-flight managers four years ago, today there are none. Neil learnt this no-nonsense manner as a hard-as-nails central midfielder after being made captain, aged only 23, by former Hamilton manager Billy Reid.

While a player, Neil was a mentor to Everton’s James McCarthy and Crystal Palace’s James McArthur. Both moved from Hamilton to Wigan before their respective transfers made them worth a combined £20million.

The pair were barely off scholarship deals when they were thrown in to the deep end of the Scottish Championship as part of a central midfield three — Neil deputising behind the other two doing all the running — and Neil helped them swim in some very murky waters.

Neil was a mentor to Everton’s James McCarthy and Crystal Palace midfielder James McArthur at Hamilton

It may be early to compare Neil with Sir Alex Ferguson but there is room for a Scot in the Premier League

‘We were just young boys coming through and you don’t really understand the game so Alex helped us, on and off the pitch,’ said McArthur. ‘Norwich is a big club and Alex coming from a small club like Hamilton, people there — whether it’s fans or players — will have doubts. But when they meet him, they will realise that the way he plays and thinks about football is the way every team wants to play.

‘Alex has good man-management but his best asset is his strength of character. He’s not afraid to tell someone if something is not being done right. You have to be strong in a dressing room, otherwise players will sense it.’

Everyone will know who Alex Neil as he walks his Norwich City side out at Wembley

Neil’s ability to coach and nurture developed further when he required two hip operations and long spells out and was encouraged by Reid to manage their Under-17s. His aptitude for leadership was recognised and when Reid left in 2013, Neil, still only 31, was given the job as player-manager. In his first full season in charge he led Hamilton — or the Accies, as they are known — into the top flight.

Trailing 2-0 to Hibernian after a crushing first-leg home defeat in the play-off final, Neil announced the team on the morning of the game, with him included. But on the coach to Easter Road, Neil dropped himself and later told the players he had made a mistake, in the dressing room before kick-off. They went on to win via a penalty shootout.

This season, their early-season form in the Scottish Premiership was incredible and they topped the table. It meant the calls were inevitable and Neil was sat watching an Under-20s game with Ronnie MacDonald when the club owner’s phone rang and Norwich wanted to speak to him. Neil would have preferred the opportunity to come further down the line, but it was too good to turn down.

Before the news was made public, Neil called his squad to the training ground for a lunchtime meeting on their day off to announce it. Defender Ziggy Gordon left in tears. Others were crying, too. Neil’s eyes were dry, of course. He is not really the teary type.

Five months later he has led Norwich to Wembley.

Walking out at the national stadium in front of tens of thousands of fans and millions more watching on television — everyone will know who Alex Neil is.