Istanbul / NationalTurk – Alex McLeish has been offered a return to management with Turkish club Besiktas. McLeish, 53, is in no rush to make a quick return after being axed by Aston Villa borad last month at the end of his only season in charge.

But the Turkish club from Istanbul are keen to appoint a foreign manager and hope to get their man quickly. Besiktas parted ways with boss Tayfur Havutcu, who was arrested in relation to match-fixing allegations last summer and he quit at the end of the 2012 season.

After Havutcu’s arrest last summer, Besiktas appointed Carlos Carvalhal as manager. Despite being liked by Besiktas fans, the Portuguese failed to win at Turkish Super League and Cup and his tactics and football knowledge had been subject to stark criticism all season long. He was sacked by the newly elected Besiktas board and the new Besiktas chairman Fikret Orman re-appointed Tayfur Havutcu at the helm. Tayfur Havutcu also have led the football operations since the start of 2012.  But a miserable playoff performance  and Havutcu’s fall from favour bt Besiktas fans led to his departure.

Besiktas : In a desperate search for its new manager ?

Besiktas board has been searching for its new manager nearly for 2 months and the 110 year old Istanbul club has been banned from European competition by Uefa for 2 years. Alex McLeish is the latest name on Besiktas’ list of candidate managers.

Alex McLeish had an unhappy time at aston Villa after switching Second City clubs last summer after leading Birmingham to Carling Cup triumph but also to relegation from the top flight.

The former Scotland defender struggled to put a winning team on the pitch after the club sold prize-asset wingers Stewart Downing and Ashley Young.

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