“I enjoy that challenge of proving people wrong,” Brendan Rodgers

Q: People say it can be ‘boring’ and ‘easy’ for Celtic. What are some of the challenges associated with going again this season?

Brendan Rodgers: “From all the clubs I’ve ever been at, this is the biggest pressure job I’ve been in. And that’s because you cannot afford to lose a game of football. You imagine any team that’s out there, they’ll get a pass for a draw, they’ll get a pass for a win. Sometimes we don’t even get a pass for a win. We can get win and booed off. That relentless nature and that’s what I love about the job.

“The expectation, the support base is to always be better, to always improve and that drives you forward. So, you know you can never just rest on your laurels here at Celtic. That means that every single day of your life you have to be on it. You have to be really focused, you have to be prepared, you know that the other team you’re playing against are going to give that extra 10-15% physically, mentally because every time you operate as a Celtic player and manager, you’re managing a final scenario.

“So, that there is virtually every game. To prepare the team, to prepare the trainings and the practice and the schedule and everything else that goes with that, to deal with that pressure, to leave you in the best possible position when you play your game, then it’s not straightforward. Yes, you’re absolutely right that there’s lots of teams that have good resources in other leagues and throughout the world but they don’t necessarily win all the time.

“Yes, we’ve got really good resources here but we haven’t been handed money. This is all generated through a model of work in the club, by our supporters, buying merchandise, everything is organic here at the football club and then of course my job is to look after the core performance of the team. But it’s definitely not easy, it’s a highly pressurised situation in which you have to perform every single game and in order to be at that level, then that’s how you train, that mentality has to be in training. So, when you have that every day, you have no rest days.

“That’s why you see players come here, some really good players, but they struggle because the mentality to survive within it, it’s a real challenge and players will be really good players. Not just even at Celtic, I’ve seen other players come up to Scotland before thinking, we’ll come to Scotland, it’s quite easy, you play for one of the big teams, you’ll be ok. No, the demands are totally different. Then you can leave and go back into the Premier League and actually do really well and be a good player in the Premier League. So, what’s the difference? The difference is pressure, dealing with pressure and at Celtic, and theRangers for that matter, there’s massive pressure.

Q: Because of all that, do you allow yourself a moment after you crossed the finish line last week to celebrate and savour it? Do you get a chance to do that?

Brendan Rodgers: “I do. I have to say, when I left Liverpool the first time to come here, I knew because of that job there and what I enjoyed, I knew my next job needed to be pressure. Otherwise, it will feel like a holiday. So, coming to Celtic and experiencing it like I did for the first time, it was absolutely no holiday, it’s pressure. I think I thrive in that situation.

“So, then coming back to here and especially how I came back that first six months, it wasn’t all singing and all dancing, it was back to, well, you’ve got to now show yourself here. And that’s what I enjoy. So, when the good moments come, of course, you enjoy it. You have to or else, if there’s no finish line ever for you, when do you celebrate your success? So, we had a nice couple of days last weekend, but very quickly you’re turning to the next game and the next challenge. Hopefully, the supporters will have enjoyed it much more. So, yeah, but you have to celebrate success, it’s so important.”

Q: It sounds like you kind of need that pressure?

Brendan Rodgers: “I think I need that challenge, absolutely, especially this period in my career and what I’ve experienced now. I can be no good if I’m comfortable and I would never get to be that in here. But, I think it’s something that I thrive on, I enjoy that and I enjoy the challenge. Last season it was clearly tighter and there was lots of things being questioned of you and whatever else. So, I enjoy that challenge of proving people wrong and there will always be something else to improve or prove in the role. So, if I don’t have it, I find it from somewhere and that’s what allows me to be the best I can be.”

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