After a recent article looking at the possibility of Steve Clarke returning to Chelsea, we get a local view on the matter and why his managerial record in Scotland speaks for itself.

Born a few miles from Kilmarnock and the brothers of former player Paul, Sir Steve Clarke (as he has been anointed in Ayrshire) has been outstanding for the club since his appointment in October 2017. He’s taken on the big guns and won, turned mediocre players into a well-drilled unit, and had the best points total in the league over the calendar year, 74 to be precise.

And he has done so while operating on a shoestring budget and a plastic pitch, on which the club had one of the worst home records in Britain before Clarke’s arrival.

Since then? The stats speak for themselves.

During the calendar year of 2018, Kilmarnock amassed the most points of any SPFL team and finished comfortably fifth in the table after being bottom after eight games when Clarke took over.

At home in 2018, they finished with a points total of 41, second with Rangers and one point behind Celtic in first.

Away from home, Steve Clarke’s men topped the table with 33 points from 20 games, two points ahead of both Celtic and Rangers, albeit having played a game more.

Celtic were thumped 5-0 at home and 7-1 away by PSG in the Champions League. The financial gap between the sides is massive, but pales into insignificance when compared to that of the SPFL Premiership winners and Kilmarnock.

PSG’s average salary is nine times that of the Scottish champions, while the gap between Celtic and Kilmarnock equates to 14 times the weekly wage.

Away from the financial side of the game, Kilmarnock are enjoying their most successful spell against the Old Firm for as long as anyone can remember. Since Clarke took over, Kilmarnock have lost only two of seven games against Rangers (W2/D3/L1), and only one of five against Celtic (W2/D2/L1).

He has upset the SFA, referees, Steven Gerrard and the Scottish football hiararcy. He is a players coach and a great man manager, see winger Jordan Jones, who has recently earned a summer move to Rangers.

Fourth in the league with a Europa League place up for grabs and a Scottish Cup replay against Rangers to come, Kilmarnock host Celtic on Sunday.

A game approached with trepidation over the last few years has been transformed into an opertunity to upset the order and affirm the belief that Kilmarnock are once again a contender in the Scottish top tier.

“A tin pot league” and “two horse race” is sure to follow, but for anyone aware of Clarke’s record at Kilmarnock, as with West Brom and Reading, it is mightily impressive.

I speak for the Killie fans when I say, keep Sarri, or at worst, as unlikely as it may be, don’t approach Clarke. He has unfinnished business in Ayrshire.