Q: Brendan, I don’t know if you’re aware, but the Celtic Fans Collective have put out another statement today, ‘Not Another Penny’ into the club. Is there a concern that the divide between the supporters and the club is getting deeper?
Brendan Rodgers: “Well, one, I haven’t seen that. Two, I would say, listen, the Celtic supporters are at the heart of this club. That is what Celtic is synonymous with, and hopefully going forward, we can find that balance that allows that great support to spill onto the field and obviously, we have that harmony throughout the club. But until then, I’m sure both parties will continue discussing. In the meantime, it’s really about affecting what we can, and that’s on the pitch.”
Q: Just on that, do you think it can have any impact on the team in any way?
Brendan Rodgers: “Well, we have to control that or try and influence that as much as we possibly can. I think on a day-to-day basis up here on the training field, of course, it doesn’t. Our focus is very much on training, developing, preparing the team and then obviously bringing that out onto the match-day. Then from that, we get the great support, and they can hopefully push the team and that’s all you can hope for.
Q: Brendan, do you almost feel that yourself and the team can be caught between the two because you can see both sides of the debate almost? You see what the fans want, and you can also see what the board might be getting at and where they come from as well. Do you feel that sometimes you and the team can be stuck between the two?
Brendan Rodgers: “No, I just think that I can really only affect going forward and affect the future of the team and influence as best I can. You can’t control everything as a manager, but you can certainly influence. The biggest influence is for the players and the training and the team and that’s what we have to focus on.”
Q: In terms of the meeting, Brendan, that took place last week between some figures from the club’s board and fan representatives, as manager, were you given any feedback to what was discussed or do you try and separate yourself from that as much as you can?
Brendan Rodgers: “I get to understand and get to hear a little bit, but of course, that remains closed, what we’ll speak about.”
Q: How difficult has it been and how frustrating is it when you’ve still got all these things bubbling on in the background? Look at the moment you guys had in the last game where there was a real togetherness in that last minute, because then you might think that’s been put to the back burner and then it’s the international break and it starts to bubble up again?
Brendan Rodgers: “Like I said, I think that with my experience, you tend to try to focus on what you actually can do. I think if you go too deep into it, and of course, we want the synergy throughout the whole club. That’s what we all want, we all want what’s best for Celtic. Control what you can, which is the football element and look to do that on the pitch and on the training pitch every single day. That’s really where my focus is. I try not to get too involved, of course I’m involved. I love Celtic, I love managing Celtic, I want Celtic to be the very best every single season. Of course, there’s a focus there on the general health of the club, but like I said, it’s for me to focus on the performance level of the team and that won’t be clouded at all. I need to make sure that we perform and we make results.
