Setting aside Brendan Rodgers’ achievements at Celtic, where he won all seven domestic trophies on offer at his time here, his best season in football south of the border was 2020-21, at Leicester City. That season he won the FA Cup, the first time Leicester lifted that trophy, and finished fifth in the league. Dropping five points in their final two games of that season saw them slip from third. A late collapse against Tottenham on the final 14 minutes of the season saw them lose out on a Champions League spot.
As he watched Casper Schmeichel lift the FA Cup a week later, Brendan was at the peak of his powers. Two years after taking control at the midlands club, silverware was back in the trophy room, and they had qualified for the Europa League. Until the closing weeks of the season, only the two Manchester clubs were above them, neither of whom were in contention when Leicester’s miracle league win happened in 2016. Without Claudio Ranieri’s achievement, Brendan’s would have received even greater praise.
There was no shame in the fact that Leicester did not kick on in the following season. They slipped to an eighth place finish that year later, as Arsenal, Tottenham and West Ham all moved above them. European competition seemed to tax his side, where they ended third in their Europa group, before a run to the semi-finals of the new Conference League.
The wheels came off spectacularly last season. A home draw against Brentford and win over Nottingham Forest was all they had to show after nine league games, a run which saw Arsenal hit four, Brighton five and Tottenham six against them.
New signings were made last season, the joint-most expensive of whom was the £17m capture of Aberdeen-born Australia international, Harry Souttar (24). Harry was part of the Australia side that won admirers during December’s World Cup. Brendan moved for the player a month later.
Dundee United and Ross County fans pondered what happened to their former player to cause such a dramatic improvement in form, while some of us wondered if Brendan had made a classic tournament-scouting mistake. In other news, Jack Hendry made seven league starts at Brugge last season, he was surely available for a lot less than £17.
Brendan can motivate and man manage with the very best of them. Alongside Chris Davies, who yesterday joined Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham, he was able to coach and organise. For me, his Achilles Heel is player trading. Fix that, and you have a more complete package.
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B78
Is that the best you can come up with.
Pompous a@@#
DAVID17 on 16TH JUNE 2023 12:50 PM
How many days until John McGinn’s contract expires again….?
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745 days.
Or, just after BR has left us for Premiership-chasing Wrexham.
HH
When Brendan signed I always remembered him saying we are not a club to loan players and his ambition was to sign better players and improve the current group that was working well until Pistol Pete started intervening and bringing in wingers and loaneees. That I will never ever forget or forgive him for that personally. When our managers have had full autonomy we’ve had success. I believe this is key to the club being successful and delivering more silverware and doing better in Europe.
I can’t understand why we don’t just appoint Davies as manager
BIG WAVY on 16TH JUNE 2023 12:18 PM
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I’ll be delighted if I’m proved wrong.
However, he wouldn’t have been at Man U as back up to De Geah if he was past it/sh&te.
Player assessment improvement ? – we’ve come a long way from the ole ‘courtesy interview’.
Uh-oh, the bat signal has just gone up for the Lawellites…..
Here they come.
HH
The way we go about player trading seems to have improved significantly. After Rodgers delivered an invincible treble in his first year, I was alarmed that summer to hear (from an impeccable source) of Celtics approach to signing Patrick Roberts. It was to me the first indication that our player trading methods were not fit for purpose. One year later we made the biggest hash of signing John McGinn (remember the whiteboard in Peters office). We then served up Bayo and Shved above the managers head before briefing against him in the media.
We had a world class manager but a dinosaur CEO. What happened after Brendan left was more evidence of this. As Brendan said when he left, in time we would come to appreciate his achievements. I suspect he knew where the real problem lay.
Form an orderly queue………
Big wicket for Australia, right on lunch
BURNLEY78 on 16TH JUNE 2023 12:35 PM
Yes , it will be interesting to see a) if BR is indeed appointed , and b) what the makeup of the backroom staff will be .
Unless I have missed something , I haven’t heard definitively if John Kennedy and Gavin Strachan are staying .
Chris Davies will be difficult to relace as second in command , but I am optimistic .
Buckland started about 10 games in 3 seasons….
Who would win in a fight between a world class manager and a world class breakfast?
Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic return: Manager would ‘have it all to prove’ if he returns
By Tom English BBC Scotland
Whether Celtic folk see it as the return of the prodigal son or the reappointment of the shameless one, Brendan Rodgers seems to be on his way back to Parkhead, bar a late hitch.
His dream job, remember. “A way of life… the ultimate… a truly great football club… one of the iconic clubs of the world… the greatest in the world.”
Rodgers will bring nous and charisma. It’ll not be dull, not for one millisecond. It’s unclear whether he will also bring the trowel he used to lay on the shtick in his first spell and, if he does, what impact those words will have on the support this time around.
“I was born into Celtic” might not work so well a second time after the bitterness and rancour he left behind when upping and leaving for Leicester City in the spring of 2019.
Much of the reaction to his exit among Celtic fans back then was weary disappointment, but among the extreme minorities there was also horrible anger.
In the days and weeks after he departed it was impossible to envisage a comeback, not even to watch a game never mind to manage the club again, which would have seemed like an outlandish concept.
But here we are on the cusp of a Rodgers restoration, for however long it lasts. The language of the fans has been tempered. Old grievances have been parked, for now. Frankly, even Lazarus would be gobsmacked with the way this is playing out.
Celtic’s logic in wanting to bring him back is obvious. He’s the closest thing they can get to a sure-fire winner, so expedience rules. The fans might have to suck it up for a while, but with Rodgers, as opposed to anybody else, there is a higher chance of success. And success tends to soothe all ills.
In going back to the future, the hierarchy of the club believe they’re giving themselves the best shot at continuing the dominance put in place by Ange Postecoglou.
Some of the stuff Celtic played under Rodgers was exceptional. He won all the trophies, dominated the landscape, lorded it over proceedings like a king on his throne.
But, if he’s coming back, context needs to be applied to what he did before and what he’s going to have to improve on now.
The fact is Rodgers inherited a champion team and existed in deeply favourable times. Rangers were a shambles, lurching from Mark Warburton to Pedro Caixinha to Graeme Murty and then Steven Gerrard. In Rodgers’ two full seasons, Aberdeen finished second.
What we remember primarily from Rodgers at Celtic is the invincible season of 2016-17, a campaign of genuine class.
We don’t necessarily recall with the same kind of clarity the following season, in which Celtic won the title with 82 points. Outside of the Covid-curtailed season of 2019-20, that is the second-lowest winning total in almost a quarter of a century. Celtic dropped points in 14 league games that season.
In his final campaign, Rodgers lost league games to Hearts, Kilmarnock, Hibs and Rangers and dropped further points against St Mirren, Livingston and Motherwell.
They had a points-per-game return of 2.3, which was putting him on course for a title-winning total of 87 had he stayed (Neil Lennon took over and Celtic did, indeed, finish on 87 points).
That’s the joint-sixth lowest title-winning tally since the turn of the millennium. In the last two seasons, Rangers’ total in finishing second was higher than in two of Rodgers’ two-and-three-quarter seasons when they finished first.
It could be argued that Celtic only idled while miles out in front and that it doesn’t matter how many points were dropped so long as the title is won. But everything we know about Rodgers and his ambition tells us that’s not the case with him.
He won all the prizes but outside of the brilliant invincible season there’s nuance there.
Postecoglou took over a mess, rebuilt an entire team and won his titles with 93 and 99 points (he had a better points-per-game ratio than Rodgers). And he did it with a much stronger closest rival.
If Rodgers re-joins the hothouse of Scottish football, he’ll find it somewhat different to what he knew before. Domestically, more challenging.
He’s a terrific manager and you’d expect him to add considerably to the club’s trophy haul, but it won’t be so easy this time. Celtic fans knock great fun out of mocking their city rivals but Rangers are way stronger now than they were.
What’s in it for Rodgers? Coming back to Glasgow to win trophies he’s already won multiple times has the look of an aging rocker on a revival tour.
The league is the non-negotiable but tor him, it’s not just about domestic football. It never was.
He sees himself as someone who can make a mark on Europe, given a decent budget. That’s part of the reason why he felt he could do no more at Celtic the last time. He wouldn’t contemplate coming back unless he felt his odds of doing something in the Champions League or Europa League were reasonable.
How Celtic strike a balance between fiscal prudence while releasing enough transfer money to satisfy Rodgers’ ambition is hard to know, but this is where they’re at.
The fact they are guaranteed group stage football in the Champions League would not have been enough of a draw unless there was enough backing to make something happen in Europe. He’s been a Champions League whipping boy before and it wasn’t fun.
Rodgers’ record in group stage and subsequent knockout European games is poor. Three wins from eight with Liverpool in 2012-13; two from eight in 2014-15; zero from two in 2015-16.
He won five from 22 with Celtic and 10 from 22 with Leicester, albeit he made the semi-final of the Conference League in 2021-22, a competition he said he hadn’t heard of until he was about to compete in it.
An overall record of 20 wins from 62 group and knockout games is a significant blot on the record of a manager who has achieved many excellent things in his career. The memory of some of the hidings he suffered at Celtic against the European elite – and not so elite – will not have faded.
One compelling question, among many, is whether he can do anything about it if his second coming becomes reality. The ‘dream job’ stuff, the rhetoric about ‘walking across broken glass to get to Celtic Park’ has had its time.
He might find a more demanding and less forgiving public now. For a manager who has done a lot, he has it all to prove.
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You can feel the venom from Mr English.
Come back Brendan, they are scared!
https://twitter.com/videocelts/status/1669673965927768066?t=0JxYvl-EczNDqV4fCLOXJw&s=19
BURNLEY78
Tom McL
Are you for the Aussies or Engerland re the cricket ?
I’m for the Aussies.
I have dual nationality and 2 passports, so it’s not just an anti-English thing.
In fact, I prefer England to win when they are playing anyone but Australia.
MELVIN UDALL on 16TH JUNE 2023 1:00 PM
BIG WAVY on 16TH JUNE 2023 12:18 PM
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I’ll be delighted if I’m proved wrong.
However, he wouldn’t have been at Man U as back up to De Geah if he was past it/sh&te.
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His 22/23 stats:
Squad: 14, Starting eleven: 0, Substituted in: 0, On the bench: 14, Suspended: 0, Injured: 14
Big wages. Past form. A silly risk from der hun. IMHO.
HH
Good article, Paul67.
It seems to me that PL was trying to implement what is now our new and fully operational scouting and recruitment model back in 2018/19. Albeit, potentially in his own flawed ways that didn’t align with Rodgers ambitions.
This time round the model has proven to be very effective. Ange touched on it in April discussing Jankovic & Gio departures when he said the club has brought in younger replacements who ‘we think have a higher ceiling’.
I would not be happy to see the likes of Maeda, Hatate, O’Reilly, Jota leave us for any less than 20m. If and when they do, recruit their replacements from the similar markets and gradually increase the player quality at the club each time.
We are sitting on a potential income of 100m due to the success of our recruitment this past 2 years. Hopefully, BR buys into this strategy and agrees when to sell (think of the Boyata shambles) and recruit from similar markets based on the recommendations from our scouting and recruitment team.
If not, then let BR bugger off again. Celtic is doing him as much a favour in asking him back and allowing him to resusitate his tarnished reputation, as he is doing us in agreeing to return where we find ourselves stuck in a spot due to Ange’s quick exit.
P67 may well have been spoon-fed excrement from inside the club. To connect the nonsense articles on the blog, this week, to PL is just absurd. PL is a professional, held in high regard by DD & the board, he will have only the clubs best interest at heart, when speaking to outside churno’s.
I would suggest that the enemy within is more likely to be the same guy that was leaking teamsheets in the past. If not, then it is solely his own personal opinion. Although, reading those articles it did give the impression that P67 knew something we did not.
Lazy Journalism since 2012
Fair enough Pablo.
Having read this leader I fully expected you to get it in the neck for twisting the knife unnecessarily and doubling down.
… and you did a little bit.
Previous comments of yours about Brendan fairly subjective?
(I think that is fair to say?)
I wasn’t precious either way.
Am with you on this one though.
Brendan is a very good coach.
Brendan improves players.
But when it comes to buying a player specifically and future proofing the squad generally…
… His record isn’t great.
Maybe it just isn’t his thing.
And maybe, as ECW said earlier, the solution is simple.
Get Mark Lawwell to do that bit.
‘I have dual nationality and 2 passports, so it’s not just an anti-English thing’.
This line made me chuckle Tom McLaughlin :-)
Clarification
Having read this leader I fully expected you to get it in the neck for twisting the knife unnecessarily and doubling down .… and you did a little bit.
Should have read
Having read this leader I fully expected you to get it in the neck for twisting the knife unnecessarily and doubling down .… and you did get it a little bit.
Here’s a leftfield thought.
Maybe Lee Congerton was just shite at his job.
HH
MELVIN UDALL on 16TH JUNE 2023 1:00 PM
BIG WAVY on 16TH JUNE 2023 12:18 PM
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I’ll be delighted if I’m proved wrong.
However, he wouldn’t have been at Man U as back up to De Geah if he was past it/sh&te.
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Man U probably have the worst scouting of any top club in the world.
They choose the Newcastle reserve keeper as backup for DeGea but punted him first chance they got.
They were left with 37 year old Tom Heaton as the only other keeper, so brought in Butland as emergency cover.
BIG WAVY on 16TH JUNE 2023 1:29 PM
Here’s a leftfield thought.
Maybe Lee Congerton was just shite at his job.
He had a glass eye for a player .
The idea that we have normalised a career bean counter and administrator as some elite footballing talent spotter for us, said so much about our need to modernise the club.
I have liked the way Nicholson went about, without much fuss.
HH
Uncle Jimmy and others.
I remember in Brendan’s time here his poor purchasing was blamed on Lee Congerton. He did follow Brendan to Leicester and, according to Wikipedia, hasn’t joined another club. I ‘d be a little more content if Brendan came but Lee didn’t.
Can anyone give me a summary on the cricket so far please.
FFS looks like Keech Jackson has hijacked the blog and written today’s Leader.
KTF
I wonder what Stevie Hammel is making of all this
Personally, I’ll forgive Brendan’s poor player tradings if he delivers the next seven trophies available .
Can anyone give me a summary on the cricket so far please.
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Brook just got out to the unluckiest dismissal ever
” 67 EUROPEAN CUP WINNERS on 16TH JUNE 2023 12:02 PM
Forgive my nonsense this morning – boredom can do that ”
Not nonsense ) to me, anyway.) I quite enjoyed your analogy and had a good wee laugh.
Keep it up (!) .
LETS ALL DO THE HUDDLE
Thanks. Long story….relaying to an old fella….smiled at that update alright
Why does everyone keep comparing Rodgers points tally to The Currents current? One glaring point you seem to miss is that the current celtic team is far superior to anything Rodgers had at his disposal previously.
Barring kieran Tierney, which current players would you trade for those of the Rodgers era?
Sionnaigh
Summary of the cricket so far ? shyte game since 1611 :)
SIONNAIGH
England 202 for 5
Root 50
Bairstow 12