Celtic 3-1 Hibs – “I thought that hunger was there in the team,” Brendan Rodgers

A delighted Brendan Rodgers spoke to Premier Sports after the 3-1 victory over Hibs at Celtic Park that earned Celtic a quarter final League Cup tie at Celtic Park against Falkirk.

Unlike Hampden yesterday afternoon which was around 40% full,  Celtic Park was near on capacity as Brendan’s team is real footballing box office with the supporters eager to be there watching Glasgow Celtic putting on a show.

Here’s everything Brendan Rodgers had to say to the broadcaster post-match this afternoon…

Q: It was a good result did you enjoy that?

Brendan Rodgers: “We worked ever so hard. We played some great football. We counter-pressed well. We defended very well, so it was very pleasing.”

Q: Daizen Maeda doesn’t need to prove himself to you. It was a great tactic to have him through the middle. He enjoyed himself, didn’t he?

Brendan Rodgers: “I think his best position is coming in off the side. I hear all of this stuff about him not being able to play as a striker but that’s five goals in two games he has scored for me as a striker. I played him in Yokohama in Japan and he got a hat trick and he got two today. He could have had more. He has played for Japan in the World Cup finals as a striker. So, he can’t be that bad. I thought he was absolutely fantastic coming in and playing in that position.”

Q: How happy are you that you now have a genuine alternative as a striker? You brought Adam Idah in and you have Kyogo and it now looks like you have a third genuine option as a striker.

Brendan Rodgers: “He gives us what we want as a striker. We can go into depth because he knew he was playing that role. The coaches went through some stuff with him and reinforced his movements as a striker. His strength is getting into space and he gives us a great option having that sort of flexibility along the front line.”

Q: When you talk about counter-pressing, nobody is better than Maeda. If you lose the ball in that final third he double and triple presses. He is a 100 miles an hour player, isn’t he?

Brendan Rodgers: “It is one of the things that I have hopefully passed on to the players in terms of that ability to double press. I said before the game our playmaker was our counter press. That’s the playmaker for the game. We will have a lot of the ball but as soon as we lose it we will have to get on to it right away. Not only that you have to go into it with everything that you have. I thought that hunger was there in the team.”

Q: You must be extremely happy to see that as it was not at the same level it is now when you came in last season, was it? There has been a huge improvement.

Brendan Rodgers: “Yes. One hundred per cent. I think there have been different challenges since I came in. The availability of players, people thinking you are going to come in and do lots of different things. It’s similar stuff. What we have are similar sorts of structures and the same movements coming in on the inside. The players have trust now as a lot of the players were new when I came in. Now they understand how we want to work and how we want to play. There have been little adaptions to the structures and the shape. Now you see them in flow and the mentality is really good and they are performing very well.”

Q: When you look at the squad and how they are playing now. Every manager will want to add more. Is there much more that you think you need in order to be where you want them to be?

Brendan Rodgers: “I think this period is straightforward. I said before the first game that the reality is that the team won’t change too much. The guys on the side have to be ready to come in. It is not complicated. You have no midweek games so you can keep your rhythm, momentum and flow but we have to have energisers to come in. After the international break, the games through until March are heavy. If we want to have the intensity in our game to sustain it we will need a stronger squad.”

Q: Is there anywhere on the park in particular that you are looking at ideally wanting to strengthen?

Brendan Rodgers: “Yeah, we have a few areas that I would like to do, but I can’t tell you.”

Q: Is that in mind to the European action, we know there’s a slight change to the format and your desire to get Celtic performing to a certain level in the competition?

Brendan Rodgers: “I don’t just want to be in the Champions League for participation, it has to be more than that. The challenge is obviously huge with the teams, but I think we can make our mark in it with a different format. There are certain criteria that you need in order to improve. We were not far away last year, some of the performance levels that we had, especially at home, were very, very close. So, I think with the right level of player to come in that can really help us then as I said, that allows us to be competitive. Not just participating in the competition.”

Q: What about players going out? Matt O’Riley has been spoken about a number of times, do you expect him to be here come the end of the window?

Brendan Rodgers: “I don’t know is the honest answer. I think you see with him, he’s an incredibly talented player, there’s a value that we have for him and if that’s not met then he will be here, it’s as simple as that. He’s really happy here, but it has to be something that the club themselves that draws him away. So, it’s just each day, I’m not overthinking it, we all know the model here at Celtic. Players will come, players will improve and they might get to a level that’s beyond them, not the club but the financial salary. But until that comes, we continue to work with him.”

Photos by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images.

Match Highlights below from Premier Sports…