BRENDAN RODGERS goes into the unknown when Celtic play Livingston in West Lothian on Sunday.
The 51-year-old Irishman will be forced to sit in the stand after receiving a touchline ban from the SFA after his comments relating to referee Don Robertson and VAR official John Beaton following the controversial 2-0 loss to Hearts at Tynecastle.
It’s a first for Rodgers who has managed Watford, Reading, Swansea City, Liverpool and Leicester City as well as the Hoops in 16 years as a team boss.
BANNED BRENDAN…Celtic boss Rodgers prepares for his first-ever touchline suspension. Image courtesy Sky Sports.
However, the gaffer insists he has no regrets over his aftermatch criticism of the SFA double-act who presided over a puzzling match in Edinburgh where Yang Hyun-jun was red-carded and the hosts were presented with a penalty-kick after the ball brushed the arm of Tomoki Iwata.
Rodgers, who also received a one-game suspended sentence, but will be able to take his place at Ibrox a week on Sunday, reflected on the SFA judgement and said: “We are obviously disappointed, but we respect the decision.
“My thanks go to the club for their unwavering support, but we respect our punishment and we move on.”
“In my time here I have always talked about improving standards, whether that is with VAR or whether it was the pitches we play on.
“My whole drive is to improve the standards and I just thought on that occasion it just wasn’t understood.”
