He began his playing career at Celtic where he was one of the Quality Street Gang, the outstanding reserve team that emerged in the late 1960s that also included Kenny Dalglish and Danny McGrain.
[9] Macari quickly became part of the renowned reserve side known as the Quality Street Gang that also included Kenny Dalglish, Danny McGrain and David Hay.
[8] In 1971, he replaced Willie Wallace in the starting line up for the replay of the 1971 Scottish Cup Final, and scored for Celtic in a 2–1 win over Rangers.
Relegation to the Second division in 1974 was the low point but Macari blossomed as a midfielder in the following seasons under Tommy Docherty, as United began to win back a large following with attacking football in which Macari enjoyed popularity alongside players such as Gordon Hill, Steve Coppell and the Greenhoff brothers.
However, he attracted widespread criticism when it emerged that he had led complaints that the £20,000 bonuses the players would receive if they won the World Cup were too low, then made extra money by selling stories to the press[15] about the disarray and tensions within the Scottish camp.
They beat the Netherlands 3–2 but this was insufficient to proceed in the tournament and the Scotland squad returned home without qualifying for the knock-out stage.
As a manager Macari insisted upon a strict fitness regime, which included extra sessions in the players' free time and the banning of alcohol in and around the club.
[17] When I took my first management job at Swindon in the old Fourth Division, one of the things I had to adjust to was the fact I was working with players with lesser ability than at Old Trafford.
The divide between Macari and Gregg became more noticeable, so the board chaired by Maurice Earle sacked both of them on Good Friday, 5 April 1985.
[19] The following season, 1985–86 saw Macari collect four Manager of the Month awards as he led Swindon to the Division 4 title with a record-breaking 102-point tally.
[19] In 1989, Macari was fined £1,000 by the Football Association after he bet on Swindon to lose an FA Cup tie against Newcastle United.
[20] His achievements at Swindon earned Macari a move to West Ham United in 1989–90, becoming the first manager there never to have worked for the club in a previous capacity.
[23] Macari bought in new recruits in future regular players, Luděk Mikloško,[24] Trevor Morley,[25] Martin Allen,[26] and Ian Bishop.
[27] The 1992–93 season saw Stoke win the Second Division title after amassing 93 points and also went on a club record unbeaten run of 25 games.
Gerry Creaney, one of the few consistent goalscorers at Celtic at that time, was played out of position on the right-wing for several weeks before being sold to Portsmouth for £600,000.
Striker Willie Falconer was signed from Sheffield United, right-back Lee Martin and goalkeeper Carl Muggleton came north from England, and in what is considered one of Macari's poorest moves, Andy Payton moved to Barnsley in a part-exchange deal for journeyman striker Wayne Biggins.
Macari announced he was leaving at the end of the season which was a surprise but he was 'stripped of his duties' before he left and later launched a lawsuit against Peter Coates for wrongful dismissal.
[4] Macari joined Huddersfield Town in December 1999 as the club's European Scout and formed part of Steve Bruce's backroom staff.
He was appointed as the permanent manager four games later and despite a valiant effort to rescue the club, he could'nt prevent them from being relegated from Division One at the end of the 2000–01 campaign.
Macari managed to steady the ship in 2001–02 and lead the club into the Second Division play-offs as the Terriers looked to bounce straight back up.
Macari was portrayed by Scottish actor Tony Curran in the 2014 television film Marvellous, based on the life of former Stoke City kitman Neil Baldwin.
There was also talk of drugs affecting his son's life and leading to his suicide,[35] but Macari later discounted that theory, admitting that much like the death of his mother, the complete story behind the tragedy may never be known.