Rodgers hits out at anonymous 'coward' who said he wanted Celtic exit

Brendan Rodgers has hit out at the “cowardly actions” of a club insider who told the media that he was engineering a move away from Parkhead.

The Celtic manager says he was “disappointed” at the anonymous comments but insists it makes him even more determined to succeed.

When asked about it at his press conference, Rodgers said: “It was interesting when I was shown that. My honest opinion is that it was a cowardly action by whoever it is.

“It’s not something that you would want, and, certainly, with my relationship with the guys I am close with on the board, I would struggle to understand why.

“Because, since I have been here, firstly in 2016 and then for my second stint, all I have tried to do is drive the club forward.

“So it is disappointing when something like that comes out, and like I say, it’s a cowardly action, but it just makes me more determined to succeed.

“It’s not what you want to wake up on a Saturday and be shown. And I think the people who know me well, know my affinity for here, they know what I want.

“But they also know I don’t sit comfortable and if someone wants to sit comfortable and be happy with what they’ve got, then I’m the wrong manager to facilitate that because I’ll always demand that continual improvement.

“I want this club to succeed but for that, if I’m sat comfortable, then it’s not going to work. So I have to get uncomfortable and that means I have to then ask questions that maybe people don’t like – but that’s my job.”

Asked if there should be an investigation into who was responsible for the story, Rodgers said: “I don’t think there’s any doubt.

“I think if you’re sat in the position that I’m in with the weight of the club on your shoulders, it’s so important that you feel supported.

“And I think that if anyone is briefing against that person when they know they could come and speak to me at any time, I’m here from early morning to late in the evening, or come to my house or do whatever.

“Listen, we all will have frustrations at times in our life and especially at Celtic where we’ve always got something.

“But – and it’s no disrespect to you guys (the media) – I would never ever think of going to bring that to the fore to hurt someone else, especially when that someone else is trying to give everything to the club.

“So, yeah, I’m pretty sure there will be some questions asked on it because there was quite a bit of detail in there – and wrong, I may add. But hopefully we’ll find out.”

Rodgers also declared that he would “100%” be open to extending his Celtic contract despite being left feeling “empty” following an underwhelming summer transfer window.

The manager has made no secret of his frustration at the club’s failure to improve the squad before they crashed out of the Champions League at the hands of Kairat Almaty a fortnight ago.

Celtic fans are planning protests against the board as a result of their summer of woe, and it has been widely speculated that the situation would prompt Rodgers to walk out on the club before or upon expiry of his contract at the end of this season.

However, the 52-year-old, who was speaking on Friday for the first time since the window closed, revealed he had never entertained thoughts of leaving Parkhead for a second time and was “hopeful” of extending his deal – if the conditions were right.

When pressed on whether this summer had influenced his thinking with regard to remaining at the club beyond this season, Rodgers said: “No, it hasn’t really changed from the last time.

“I would love to stay here longer. I’ve had informal chats with Dermot (Desmond, the majority shareholder) and Michael (Nicholson, chief executive).

“I haven’t had an offer yet to think over, and until that comes, then I’m not going to be so arrogant to say, ‘yeah, I want to be here for another three years’. The club might not want me here.

“So I have to respect that, and until that happens. Then I just continue to do my job.

“And if going forward, if I do get offered a deal, then of course there needs to be conditions within that allow me to work to the best I possibly can. If not, then it’s maybe just there’s two philosophies that don’t quite add up and I also accept that.

“I’ll go away, I’ll be a Celtic supporter for the rest of my life, and we’ll go our separate ways. But my hope was to come back here, to take the club forward.

“We’ve seen progress, we’ve seen Europe, we’ve seen everything – so can we sustain that? It hasn’t quite happened for us in the Champions League, but I’m hopeful that in the future something can be resolved.”