Celtic This morning have released the following statement concerning Brendan Rodgers who is apparently in Leicester at the moment.
“CELTIC Football Club today confirmed that it has been approached by Leicester City FC to speak to Brendan Rodgers with regards to their current managerial vacancy.
“Brendan has indicated to the Club that this is an opportunity he wishes to investigate further and therefore, very reluctantly, the Club has granted him permission to speak to Leicester City.”
So Brendan Rodgers has walked early, just eleven games short of becoming an all-time Celtic legend by winning a Treble Treble. The fall-out from last summer’s transfer window fiasco, which has already cost Celtic £30million in lost Champions League money, is now there for us all to see.
Celtic’s is essentially run by Peter Lawwell and some would say that he involves himself rather too much in the football department – Jerry Toljan, who speaks perfect English, recently referred to having spoken the the manager and the Director of Football, before agreeing to join Celtic.
From Lawwell’s point of view, he could review the previous transfer window with some dismay. Marvin Compper has still played less football for Celtic than Rafael Sheidt, Charly Musonda was an over-hyped legend in his own head and Jack Hendry just doesn’t look like being anywhere near good enough to play for a team like Celtic.
Lawwell, like the rest of us, didn’t see the value in these transfer window deals and despite a second treble being secured it looks like the moment that the open top bus to back to Celtic Park the problems started.
The first indication we got was the story that Kieran Tierney was wanted by Everton and Rodgers gave an interview talking about the morality of allowing players to go to England as they could make more money, careers are short etc. This seemed like the last time he towed the party line.
Some prominent supporters, close to the board, and a few of the Lawwell pack in the Fans media, started briefing against Rodgers – one even suggesting that he should be sacked. The China Crisis story was then leaked from the same source and while all this was going on John McGinn was kicking his heels waiting for Celtic to follow up on the meeting that he’d had just before the season ended with Rodgers, where he had agreed to join the Champions.
There’s some bad blood between Celtic and Hibs at the boardroom level. Petrie and Lawwell are as stubborn as each other. This continued long past the summer with Celtic preventing Scott Allan, who had already signed a pre-contract with Hibs to join them in May, and having zero chance of playing for Celtic (under Rodgers), from signing for the Easter Road club in January.
Also in January, when linked with Maryan Shved, Rodgers seemed to detach himself from the signing suggesting that the Ukrainian winger – who scored a hat-trick at the weekend – was somehow a club signing. It was curious at the time and was picked up by the fans media, but Rodgers clarified the situation by revealing that the contact with the player came via an agent he had worked with at Liverpool who had a very good reputation.
So even if the player had arrived at Celtic – he’ll be here in April – through a Rodgers contact, the Irishman was clearly distancing himself from the deal, knowing that he’d be an asset for Celtic and not him as our manager.
Neil Lennon looks like coming in to see the season through. He will have the incentive, just like the last time he got the job on a temporary basis, to do well and maybe earn the job on a permanent basis.
He will of course get the support of the Celtic fans but will have to operate under the thumb of the CEO. Just the way Peter likes it, really.
