SCOTT BAIN has revealed the leadership qualities of Scott Brown in the fall-out of Brendan Rodgers’ sudden departure to Leicester City, as Lisbon legend Bertie Auld pointed out in an exclusive interview with CQN on Saturday.
The Iirishman left Celtic in disarray on Tuesday when he quit to take over Leicester City – only 24 hours before the crucial Premiership encounter against Hearts in Edinburgh.
Former Hoops boss Neil Lennon was appointed as interim gaffer in dramatic circumstances and led the champions to a 2-0 win at Tynecastle and followed that up with an identical triumph over Hibs in the Scottish Cup quarter-final at Easter Road on Saturday evening.
The goalkeeper paid tribute to the club captain and also praised the professionalism and mentality within the ranks as the players responded magnificently to the challenge in the wake of Rodgers’ swift exit.
Brown, who has been at Parkhead for 11 years after Gordon Strachan spent £4.4million to sign him from Hibs, put in another Man of the Match performance at his old stomping ground and even scored the killer second goal – his third strike in recent times after going two years without registering.
Bain, speaking to the Daily Record, said: “The club would be a different place without Broony. He does so much for the boys and keeps the boys together.
“He drives us through in training and demands the highest standards, so he is massive for the club irregardless what has been going this week outside the changing room.
“I think you can see from the two results just how professional the boys are.
BROONY BE PRAISED…Scott Brown after thumping in Celtic’s second goal against Hibs.
“We have just got on with our work and implemented the same things that we have done before.
“Playerwise nothing has really changed for us. We just wanted to go into the two big games and get the two wins and we’ve managed to do that.
“We have won two out of two, so it’s been okay. I think it is too quick to start talking about whether we have changed systems. The gaffer has come in and basically continued the work we had been doing before.
“It was a successful blueprint and carrying that on has been working for us.
“We all know the gaffer. He brought me to Hibs, we know what he is about and we want to do the best for him and we also want to do the best for ourselves. We have shown that in the last two games, shown how determined we are to maintain the success.
“If you look at our season and the number of games we play and the number of important games we play, you see that these lads are the strongest mentally.
“They show that every week. It was tough and there has been a little bit of a distraction, but I think we have shown our quality in these two games.
“It is great. Obviously, we’ve had to come to Edinburgh for two difficult games and the boys have shown unbelievable character and, most of all, quality.
“We have come through both the games.”
