Watch the Celtic manager’s interview with Sky Sports at Lennoxtown this afternoon ahead of his media conference, with everything that was said there available to read below…
🍀 Expecting “tough game” at Dens
🍀 “I haven’t a clue” about Bobby Clark speculation
🍀 Important fans are “content and happy”We’ve been speaking to Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers ahead of Sunday’s game vs Dundee, live on Sky Sports 📺 pic.twitter.com/49mwy6gjZ7
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) October 17, 2025
Q: Do you want to start with injuries then, Brendan? How is everyone ahead of this weekend?
Brendan Rodgers: “Daizen Maeda will be out. He felt his hamstring a little bit towards the end of the last game against Motherwell. He went away internationally to see if it would get better, but he obviously didn’t play when he was away. So, he will miss this weekend, and we’ll assess it after that. Paulo Bernardo’s been ill, so we’ll see how he recovers in the next 24 hours. Apart from that, everyone’s okay.”
Q: Alistair Johnston?
Brendan Rodgers: “Yes, Ali’s back in training, which is great news for us. Hopefully, all being well, we’ll finalise the squad tomorrow, but hopefully he’s good to go.”
Q: How do you assess the start to the season? What needs to improve for you over the coming months?
Brendan Rodgers: “I think it’s always a challenge, the European aspect of everything. There’s a lot made of the past and what has happened. But really, it’s addressing now the future going forward. We’ve shown glimpses of our game in a lot of our domestic games. We just need to find a more consistent level and, of course, that’s something I’m really looking forward to doing. The players are working very, very hard. We had a really good victory in the last game against a good team that were unbeaten in the league so far. So, we knew we had to really work for that, and we showed our spirit and our quality by the end of that game. So, we want to continue in that vein. Now, the focus is very much on the seven games in 21 days, and that’s my only focus.”
Q: What do you expect from Dundee? It can be a difficult trip up the Dens.
Brendan Rodgers: “Yes, always. Our record there is very, very good as a club over numbers of years, but it still doesn’t make it an easy place to go. I think Steven Pressley will have them really well organised. He’ll have them competitive. They’ve shown already this season that they can get good results and performances. So, we know coming back after the international game, we need to get our fluency and get our tempo into the game as quickly as we can and look to make it really difficult for them, hopefully.”
