Brendan Rodgers Discussion Thread

Celtic are just one point away from sealing their fourth successive SPFL title and they get the opportunity to cap off the fight for the prize tomorrow (Saturday) against Dundee United at Tannadice.

A draw or a win for Brendan Rodgers’ Hoops in the lunchtime kick-off on Tayside will push the button on another title-winning celebration at the sound of the final whistle.

That achievement would lift the curtain for a supporters’ carnival at Tannadice and wherever Celtic fans are gathered in front of TV screens around the world.

However, despite scoring 10 goals in their last two outings, the Celts know there will be a tough 90 minutes of football before any possible celebration against Jim Goodwin’s side, a Dundee United team who have their own aspirations for this final post-split run-in, and the Celts have been preparing for that threat this week.

The Celtic manager said: “It is another game for us, so I think most of the concentration has been on the performance level.

“We carry into the game a level of performance which is a really high standard over the last two, and we want to maintain that, but we know it will be difficult.

“Jim’s had a brilliant season, a guy who’s had a couple of challenges in some of his other jobs, but when going to Dundee United and getting them promoted and then keeping them in the top six this season, I think he’s done so, so well.

“They are a team that don’t give up many chances, we saw that when we were up there the last time, when it was 0-0,

'But we know where we’re at, we know what we need to do, and we know that we want to leave Tannadice as the champions.'

“And, for that we need to perform.

“We’d have liked it to have been at home, that was our grievance a few weeks ago, but that’s well behind us now.

“I think any time you win the league, of course it’s special and you would love to do it if you can in front of your own supporters ideally, but, whenever you win it, you win it.

“So we don’t want to delay it any longer than we have to, but, for that we have to perform


The titles have been rolling in for Celtic thanks to the hard work instilled in, and by, the side in every day of each successful campaign, and that’s what makes each title win feel even better than the last.

The Irishman said: “I think that’s what retains the hunger. I think that this season has been so satisfying in many ways for me and I’ve loved seeing us evolve as a team, develop as a team from the beginning of the season.

“I’ve enjoyed seeing us bounce back from the setbacks that we’ve had, and I’ve enjoyed seeing the players now get very close to feeling their reward for all of the sacrifice that they make, because they are an incredible group of professional players that come in to train and to work every single day.

“They don’t look for any easy days, they don’t look for any easy games – sometimes we haven’t been at our best for whatever reason, but it’s certainly not through the honesty of the group.

“So we’re at that point of the season now, we’re very close, five games to go, a cup final to look forward to and we really want to finish the season strong.

“And I’ve always felt from my first time here, if you’re going to win, try to win in the best way that you possibly can, and that’s what we want to do this season.”

 

What’s the thoughts people have if Spurs go for him, with Ange going?

I might be kidding myself here, and he’ll make sure that we go all out in the summer deciding on it, and if he gets that backing and the money he got this summer with how healthy our bank account is now… I think he’d stay.

First time he was full of bravado and promises and I didn’t think so. What do people think?

 

Can't see him going to Spurs. What would be the point? I see zero appeal for him.

Doesn't mean he stays here past the agreed 3 years though

 

Big wages, somehow they’re viewed as a sleeping giant, Ange has spent a lot of money on really good young players that he’d get the use of to come good after they’ve spent a season bedding in, bigger money to spend….

In theory they are a club with massive potential that’s why they’ve got managers that have went there maybe a step down for them at the time thinking they’ll do it, Conte, Jose and in a different way Ange. Who left the perfect match for him personally, thinking he could.

In reality, don’t think any manager would, they are built in to the foundation losers. But think the last three managers, the complaints they have had and that as a club it’d be more of the same as he’s done down there already, and not very exciting. I don’t think he would.

His mindset this time, it feels different than the bravado and big talk of last. And last time I bought into it but by his last season after McGinn I knew first offer he was off. Don’t see it this time. And if the summer window is good, he’ll sign for longer

 

Got some buzz off his buzz in the interview and around the crowd after..

 

Up and down with the football this season but he's a serial winner.

 

He was buzzing in that interview

 

Brendan Rodgers has confirmed he will be at Celtic next season.


The Celtic boss delivered an emphatic message on his future after Celtic sealed the Scottish Premiership title with a 5-0 win over Dundee United.

"I will be here next year, 200 per cent," said Rodgers. "No one knows me bar very, very few and there's even less that understand me


When I see all the reports of where I am going, people who know me and supposed to know where I am going, I'm unhappy...

"I've never been happier here I've had the most amazing season here. Can we now finish strong, regroup in the summer and be even better."

 

102 league goals scored with 4 games to spare. And yet we’ve still had fans moaning about the “boring” football. Delighted he is coming out and saying he will be here next season. Get him backed in the summer and let’s see what we can achieve in Europe next year.

 

Brendan, champions again. Tell us about your emotions at full-time?

We're very happy, firstly, for our players because of what they've given to this season. Their mentality, their work, I've said before, but it all boils down to an idea, how you want to play, walking your socks off and having the club values at heart in everything that you do.

This team have shown every moment of that right the way through the season. When we've needed to, we've turned up. That's the reality. We knew this was going to be a tough game, and it was a tough game despite the scoreline.

We had to stand up for the first 15 minutes, be strong, be aggressive, do all the things you have to do, do the dirty work. From that, our football comes into it, and we scored five and could have had more.

This is a place where Jim (Goodwin) has done an incredible job. He's done an incredible, here, of bringing the team up and getting them into the top six, fighting for European football. Today was about Celtic - and I am so pleased for everyone.

It was almost a performance, as you say, that encapsulated the whole season and everything you wanted to do this season…

Yeah, I’ve had of these, to win titles and be dominant and showing a concentration level that's needed.



We didn't slow down the whole game. We still kept going to try and get more goals and hit the targets that we wanted to. At this point in the season, I'm really pleased with the progress of the team. We've won more games than last season, scored more goals, and conceded fewer.

It's just the case of working our way through to finish the season as strong as we can.

You've won a number of titles with Celtic, but what would you say makes this one special?

They're all special, I would say, but this is really satisfying. I think that, tagged on to where there's no breaks this season, we've been much more competitive in the Champions League.

Why it's so special is that the winter period, when there were so many games, from October, November time through to February, the games were relentless. The players kept their concentration, kept their work rate. I changed the team to keep the freshness, keep the energy, and they still delivered. It feels like a really special one.

Last year was tight. We needed to improve, and we have improved. I know there was a wee bit of chat around, tedious, I think the word was, if someone is in here who said it, it's okay. That's your opinion. It's not tedious for me, for the football club.

We are in a competition that we want to be the very best. If we land at 15 points, clear with five games to go, with a plus 42 goal difference over our nearest rival, then I can tell you what, that's not tedious. That's professionalism at its highest level and concentration, and performance.

For me, it is so satisfying. We've got four more games to go, we've got records we want to beat, and then we have a Scottish Cup final to finish off the season. Hopefully, it will be a really memorable one.



You had an injury setback to deal with. How is Jota?

He just felt his knee with the medical guys, we're looking at whether his meniscus is a little bit sore. We'll just have to assess that. Of course, they put it in the brace to protect it, but we'll see in the next couple of days.

It's fair to say you're happier now than you've ever been?

It's fair. It's been interesting, I've got to say, the last few months. People were deciding where I was supposed to be going, and I wasn't happy.

But what I can tell you, and I would say, listen to what I say, not what people try to anticipate my mood to and what I might be. I can tell you I said 150 per cent, 200 per cent, I'll be here for sure next season because we want to build again, we want to grow.

But what I'll also say, there are very, very few people who know me, and there are even fewer who understand me. So that's a really, really small group of people. So when I see all the headlines, I don't have an agent, so I don't have an agent spinning a story for me or anything like that. It's just a guess.

So if there's a headline out there, I am telling you and you guys, it's a guess. Because I have hardly anyone who knows what I think and actually understands how I work. But absolutely, I am so, so happy.

I came back because of the professional challenge of Celtic, knowing the pressures. My emotional attachment to the club clearly has me here rather than elsewhere. And just the chance to be the best manager at Celtic that I can possibly be.

And days like today make it really special



You said few people know you and understand you, but Dermot Desmond, is he one of those people there, who know you and understand you?

Well, he certainly does, and I haven't spoken to him yet - we spoke the other day. But I wouldn't be sitting here if it weren't for Dermot. That's the reality of it. Dermot put so much faith in me. When I first met him, when I first came, the first time, we hit it off in that first meeting.

And from there, he's always believed in me. And then you imagine the courage he had at the time to offer me the chance to come back, when I'm pretty sure there'd be people inside the club, a lot of people outside the club that wouldn't have had me back.

But he believed in me, trusted me, and supported me. And yeah, hopefully all these rewards and everything, he can feel as I feel, because I wouldn't be here otherwise.

Do you still feel you've got more to achieve?

Yeah, I believe so. I think so, I'm two years virtually into a three-year deal. I said a minimum I would be three years.

The big thing with Celtic is it's about having the energy. That's the big thing. And there are lots of other things. Of course, as any manager, you need to feel wanted, you need to feel appreciated. You need to feel that you can develop the team, you can develop the club.

So there are lots of things that come into it. But I definitely know that we want to finish better than what we did last year. And then I'll go into next year super hungry to beat this year, whatever we end up doing



Brendan, did days like today make you want to stay here longer term when you're celebrating in front of all those fans?

Well, I'd sense more to stay in the present, really.

I don't want to think too much about it going forward, because like I said, I love the time here. It's been absolutely amazing. And seeing the happiness of everyone else.

And it has felt different this time, because the last time I was here, everything was there. And obviously, there was always that bit of awkwardness and difficulty coming back. But it never affected me in terms of wanting to be as professional as I could to make the club successful, to make the team successful. And that hunger to do that is still burning strongly inside.

And I want to be able to take that into next season and see what happens.

 

I wonder if theres been any conversations about extending his contract. I think if he did sign a further deal it would reassure the board to open the purse strings more in the Summer. If hes likely to move on, the board may start looking ahead and be reluctant to push the boat out if they think there will be a new manager to recruit next Summer.

The end of next season is likely going to be a significant transitional moment if Rodgers moves on. McGregor will be 33 then. And we could potentially see a number of other senior players reach the end of their time here. Could be a bit of a rebuild job for a new manager and that always carry risk.

 

The only London-based club he’d want to be a part of is most likely Chelsea, given his history there. Moving to Spurs would be such a high risk move and would dent his chances of ever ending up there. He also wants to prove he has loyalty, so it is in our boards hands to make sure even that doesn’t happen.