What do Scottish Premiership managers think of league reconstruction?

Premiership managers have been reacting to proposals that would change the top flight of Scottish football.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers would rather Scotland’s top flight increased in size than lost teams.

A ten-team Premiership is on the list of potential options as an SPFL working group gets set to discuss league reconstruction.

However, taking two teams out of the division looks a non-starter, especially given 11 of the 12 Premiership clubs would need to vote in favour.

The status quo plus options for 14 and 16 teams will also be discussed amid concerns the fixture card is near breaking point.

When asked for his views on the Premiership make-up, Rodgers said: “I certainly don’t think it needs to get smaller. If it goes any way, I think there’s still a notion for me that we could bring a few more teams into the league.

“Clearly there’s maybe issues around TV revenue, money, whatever way that would look like, and there may be a challenge to that.

“But I think from a football perspective, I’ve always felt that the increase in the league would help.”

The expansion of European competition both at league stage and in knockout-round play-offs meant there was no scope for the Premiership to have a winter break this season.

And while Rodgers declared himself “fairly comfortable” with the 38-game total, he warned the quality of football in general was at risk from over-saturation.

“There can be too much football,” he said. “There absolutely can. We all love football. I watch football from all around the world, games most nights, sometimes three or four games a day, but you risk just showing too much football which in time might turn people off. So I think we just have to be careful with the game.

“I’ve also mentioned before, I do think that it will become a 12-month season. The game and players may have to look at different recovery periods other than just in the summer.

“This has been the first full season with the extra Champions League games in there and without the winter break.

“So there’s no doubt that period was a tough period and we managed to get through it incredibly well. That’s not to say that happens every season.”

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson believes Scottish football would benefit from expansion of the top flight.

“I’ve been quite clear on it, the league needs to be bigger to allow development,” the former Northern Ireland assistant manager said.

“It’s different for fans, you’re not playing the teams three times a season. I think it’s important for all aspects.

“I’m not Scottish, but the development of young Scottish players is at the forefront of a lot of people’s minds.

“That’s easier to do when every game you’re not looking over your shoulder, that you might get relegated, which is a catastrophe for the football club and a lot of teams will feel exactly like that.”

Hibernian head coach David Gray does not believe there is a pressing need for change but would not be against increasing the league in size.

“I certainly wouldn’t be for reducing the number of teams, because it would probably become a bit samey-samey, from previous years when that happened,” he said.

“I wouldn’t be against change, if I thought it was in a positive way, but I also would want to protect what we’ve got, because I think we have a very good product.”

Hearts head coach Neil Critchley believes expansion could provide variety and solve an imbalanced fixture schedule.

“It doesn’t seem quite right that you possibly play more games away or at home,” he said. “That then suggests that the competition can’t be fair, which to me, from a logical way of looking at things, that can’t be right.

“I know finances play a part in that as well, but variety is the spice of life, and surely we all want a little bit more variety in the competition?”