The Premiership kingmaker out to make Motherwell Scotland's Bodo/Glimt

Breaking news from the world of sport: The Premiership kingmaker out to make Motherwell Scotland's Bodo/GlimtImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Former Norwich defender Jens Berthel Askou took charge of Motherwell last JuneByNick McPheatBBC Sport ScotlandPublished6 minutes agoJens Berthel Askou is on a video call addressing international members of the Well Society, who form a fraction of Motherwell's 4,000-strong fan ownership group. The 43-year-old Danish coach has just been asked how realistic it is for the modest Lanarkshire side to emulate the freakish success of Champions League last-16 club Bodo/Glimt or shock 2025 Swedish champions Mjallby. "If we're brave enough to be extremely consistent with the way we have identified possible advantages against better opponents with more resources, I think it's possible," he replies.

At that point in late October, Askou's team were attracting attention with their bold and intense possession-based football, yet their ceiling appeared limited to a top-half push after securing only a second league win in nine matches. Seven months on, Motherwell are on the brink of securing European qualification, playing what former Celtic striker Chris Sutton describes as the best football in the UK. That reputation has labelled Askou's men as kingmakers in the Scottish Premiership title race - a billing they lived up to with a stunning win at Rangers two weeks ago.

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Leaders Hearts and second-placed Celtic are next to visit Lanarkshire, where Motherwell have lost just twice in 16 months, in a five-day spell that could decide the destination of the trophy. But who is the man leading the Fir Park revolution? Hearts have league in sight - what next in title race?

Published19 hours agoJust's rise from Austrian second tier to Premiership standout Published28 AprilLatest Motherwell news, analysis and fan views Demands, litter-picking & changing cultureImage source, Getty ImagesMotherwell's form has tailed off after a remarkable run of one defeat and 14 clean sheets in 20 league matches that had them in scarcely believable title contention. Despite that, Askou's nine-month Premiership journey has felt like a linear path to success, with a European spot in touching distance. That does not apply to his managerial career, although demands have always been sky-high.

At Danish club Horsens, where Askou experienced top-flight promotion and relegation, day one of his two-and-a-half-year spell began with him scurrying about with a bin bag because he felt the facilities were not up to standard. Sporting director Niels Erik Sondergaard, who had signed the former Norwich and Millwall defender as a player for Esbjerg a decade earlier, appointed him. "He felt it was a little bit dirty.

He always wanted things clean and organised around him," Sondergaard tells Scotland, recalling Askou dipping in and out of bushes to collect fast food rubbish. "As a player he was not born with the biggest talent, but he made it through dedication, hard work and mentality.

The story has climbed to the top of the sports agenda, with fans and analysts following closely.