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When I spoke to fans from each of the 12 Scottish Premiership sides at the start of this season, I asked each of them to nominate the person they thought would be 2017/18’s ‘Bampot of the Year’. 58% suggested Kyle Lafferty.

An understandable choice given the man’s track record, and one that seemed a sure thing after the lanky forward aimed an offensive gesture at Celtic fans on the opening day.

As it happened, though, one of the most consistently entertaining figures in Scottish football this season was one of Lafferty’s colleagues. Previously known as the man behind Scotland’s infamous 4-6-0 formation, Levein decided the time was ripe for a reinvention. As @NewcoTed put it earlier this week, 2017/18 has seen a “Craig Levein rebrand”.

Levein 2.0 has been a polarising figure in Scottish football. For every fan applauding his withering putdowns and wry smile, there is another calling him a “specky f***ing reprobate” (@kxyleighdorxn), “specky g**p” (@GordonWBell), “specky spud” (@kmcluskey67), “specky f*d” (@oranstorrie99), “specky d**k” (@KevinRyan85), “specky w**k”(@charley_X67), “specky weapon” (@stubob1888), “specky tube” (@Jamiekerr33), “specky hotdog” (@jacksonbarkerr), “specky hotdog extravaganza” (@elliotsmith93), “specky weirdo” (@paulmoncur), “specky coward” (@DecRob94), “specky four eyes” (@dillonmcaskill), “specky stinking bitter b**tard” (@naevaypal), “specky t**t” (@BenAtkinson97), “specky goose” (@Odee1888), “specky p***k” (@edits_celtic), “specky f***ing weirdo” (@stushy93), “specky welt” (@MikeyBryce7), “specky t***er” (@joemcquade91), “specky briefcase w***er” (@JamieMurrie), “specky idiot” (@MuiryCeltic), “specky f***y” (@MrHarryMcCann), “specky Tory” (@danny_marley), “specky dinosaur” (@DecRob94) (or a “specky spotty b**tert wae boils all over his back no doubt” (@DarrenBoyle1888).

As I said, a polarising figure.

Brendan Rodgers, Neil Lennon and Michael Stewart have all been on the receiving end of Levein’s quips, with an inconsistent season on the pitch overshadowed by a consistently entertaining season off it. With the departure of Gordon Strachan, Levein has selflessly filled the gap for a former Scotland manager ready to deflect attention from underwhelming results by being a smarta**e in interviews.

Levein was back on this week, following Celtic’s 3-1 win at Tynecastle. Rodgers took issue with the Tynecastle surface, saying he was “embarrassed” about the length of the grass. No matter your opinion of Levein, you have to acknowledge his way with words. Not for him the ‘Shut it ya f***y’ school of Scottish verbal jousting. The Hearts boss relishes any opportunity to drop a quotable one-liner, and this week was no different. After insisting that Rodgers can “bleat all he wants” about the pitch, Levein added “I would have hated to see the fury and the froth if they had lost the game”. More of this please.

This was not the first time Levein had got under the skin of @antisevcobhoy67 and friends, having taken a dig earlier in the season at Scott Brown (AKA He Who Must Not Be Mocked). When asked if Hearts toddler Harry Cochrane required more protection from referees, Levein responded “I think everybody should get a bit more protection from Scott Brown really”. A wonderful ‘Oh no he DIDN’T’ moment for Scottish football’s archives, and one that in no way seemed ironic after the treatment Brown received at the hands of Hearts star Steven Naismith last weekend.

His magnum opus, however, came at the expense of Hibs boss Official Neil Lennon. Only a true master of the wind-up could force laid-back Lennon into a confrontation, and Levein was that master. Luring Lennon into the bam-up by claiming that his side’s Edinburgh derby win would help to “restore the natural order”, he sat back and waited for the inevitable Lennon implosion. It didn’t disappoint.

“What does that mean? I don’t understand that. What is the natural order? It’s just a crock of c**p” raged Lennon, in a rare display of anger. As the Lennon seethe simmered, Levein hit out with his most iconic line of the season. Upon being asked if he regretted his comments, Levein Leveined “Regrets? No, it’s a good laugh isn’t it?”. Surprisingly, Lennon saw things differently, responding “I didn’t find it funny” and insisting that “The gloves are off”. And with that, a year’s worth of memes were born.

Levein was even involved in a spat with one of his former players. Accusing pundit and former Jambo Michael Stewart of repeated personal attacks, Levein responded in the appropriate manner by being the bigger man and refusing to be lower himself to petty point-scoring engaging in some cheap personal attacks of his own.

Claiming that Stewart was “making a fool of himself” and admitting “I don’t particularly like him”, Levein went in with studs showing and added “I can take criticism if it’s fair and it’s based on something other than a grudge, but he’s going to self-combust one day … Someone was telling me that he was trawling about on Saturday night trying to find stuff on the Internet to prove that we hadn’t played well. It is hysterical. He just needs to chill”. You’ve got to feel for previous generations who missed out on this sort of petty public point-scoring and had to make do with just watching the actual football.

Levein still wasn’t finished. Like an aggrieved ex you really shouldn’t have sent those texts to, he told reporters that when Stewart came to Tynecastle on loan, the £1 a week token fee paid by Hearts represented “the worst value for money player I have ever had. That is a fact”. He ended his rant by claiming “I’m actually not that bothered about Michael Stewart”, a line which works best when you imagine Ross Geller adding “Uh uh uh uh…FINE BY ME!”.

To think, back in August everyone assumed Levein’s season had peaked with his decision to appoint himself as the new manager. Yes, in case you’d forgotten, after meeting with candidates for the Hearts job Director of Football Craig Levein decided that the most impressive candidate for the Hearts job was Craig Levein.

If nothing else, it’s testament to Levein’s knack for making headlines that the biggest Tynecastle talking point this season isn’t the fact that the club were selling a fake lego bus for £79. We’ve not even mentioned the time he was sent to the stand after sarcastically applauding referee Bobby Madden, the time he ended Celtic’s invincible run with a 4-0 doing or the time he said whatever snidey thing he’ll inevitably say after tonight’s Edinburgh derby.

Love him or hate him, he’s been the standard bearer for utter sh**housery in Scottish football this season, and for that at least he should be applauded.

It’s only right then, that we end with a (genuine) quote from the man himself:

“Half the things I say, I think to myself afterwards

‘What a f***ing p***k I am…’”