No sooner had Celtic completed their domestic treble by defeating Aberdeen in the final than discussion moved towards what exactly Brendan Rodgers can do next. Celtic are believed to be keen on four players – a centre-back, midfielder, winger and striker – as they plan for the new campaign.
Rodgers, who has seen his career rejuvenated in Glasgow, presided over a Celtic team that did not lose a domestic game all season; Saturday's 2-1 triumph at Hampden, where Tom Rogic scored an injury-time winner, proved their toughest test. Rodgers speaks routinely about continuing improvement, with European football surely the true barometer of that. As the dust settled on Saturday's win, Celtic's manager warned competing with the Champions League's elite is still a formidable challenge.
“You have to be careful and recognise where we are,” Rodgers said. “We’re 10 times behind budget-wise. You have to be realistic.
“We want to qualify, first and foremost. That will always be a challenge. Then we have to try and see what we can do. The gauge for us is to measure calmly once we’ve qualified. We would like to be in Europe for the second part of the season, whatever competition that’s in, and that’s a huge, huge ask for a club like ourselves.”
Raised standards
Some will smile at Rodgers' raising of finance, given that Celtic's spending power dwarfs that of every other club in Scotland. Still, there can be no doubt the former Liverpool manager has raised standards considerably since moving north last summer. Rodgers reflected on the most mentally draining season of his career.
“That’s what it’s like as a manager at clubs like Liverpool and Celtic, where the expectations are huge and you have to win,” he added. “I want to impose a way of playing and working which doesn’t just happen with a click of the fingers. So, yes, it’s the pressure which is always there. You just manage it and cope with it. But then there is a part of you which has to press the reset button.”
Rodgers is pragmatic regarding the retaining of key players. “Football is about two things for players -– game time and money,” he said. “So I’m not going to give all the fruity answers or nice answers. No, what we can do is create an environment that is fantastic for them to be in. If they decide to move, it’s okay. We’ll fight to keep them but if they don’t want to stay, we’ll find someone else. No problem, someone else will come in and play and hopefully do well for us.”
Contender
Speculation continues to surround the Aberdeen manager, Derek McInnes, who is among the contenders to succeed David Moyes at Sunderland. Aberdeen's wait for the Scottish Cup – they last won it in 1990 – goes on.
"I've said it often enough, I love working here," McInnes said after a game in which Republic of Ireland international Jonny Hayes gave his side a brief early lead. "I think it's a brilliant club. I feel at home here. It would take something special for me to want to leave." Guardian Service
