Rodgers admitted: “There are some fantastic coaches up here.
“It’s a different test up here, but some of the coaches and managers I’ve met have been brilliant.
“I virtually knew no-one apart from Derek McInnes — I knew him a little from his time at Bristol City because we had some communication when I was at Liverpool.
“But I’m still finding out new things about Derek and I’ve been impressed by a lot of the guys up here.
“They might not have the facilities — and they don’t have the money the clubs down south do — but they manage to find a way to make it work.
“It’s been brilliant for me to come up against them and it would be wrong to single out just one.. But coming to Scotland means that I’m a better manager now than when I left Liverpool.
“There are two reasons for that. The first is that my players have made me better and the second is the quality of the other coaches, who have all posed different problems for me.
“All the tactics and the styles are all different and I’m a better manager for having dealt with that and I’ll be better still a year from now.
“No matter how much or how little they’re being paid, the players up here always give their all and there is a physical aspect to that.
“We’ve all seen over the years that big teams can go to lesser teams and find it very tough. That’s what you get here every week.
“I’ve been impressed by how my players have coped with that, how we’ve dealt with teams who sit in really deep, how we’ve found a way to beat opponents with 11 players behind the ball.
“Regarding the last two games against Rangers (sic), we’ve been glorious with the ball and technically very good. We coped with the pressure and our game model stood up to their tactics.
“We’ve played against them six times this season and, in those games, we’ve come up against 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2 and 4-diamond-2.
“I knew, from that day on, that any thought of coasting could be forgotten about, although I would never have done that anyway.
“This is my profession, this is my life. I’ve really enjoyed being here and not just because we’re winning all the time although, of course, that helps.
“But the challenge of qualifying for the Champions League and then looking to improve once we get there, the expectancy to win every single game.
“Okay, the Scottish Premiership isn’t as competitive as the English Premier League, but not too many top divisions are. When I came in, I wanted to win in the best way we possibly could and that was my challenge.