Brendan Rodgers addresses talk about problems at Celtic, recruitment concerns, and Switzerland rumours.

Celtic’s manager discusses current mood, recruitment, and why Adam Idah is not a last-minute stopgap.

Brendan Rodgers has a problem that goes beyond his current frustrations with Celtic’s rigid recruitment structure and the rutted state of the Parkhead pitch.

Rodgers has admitted several times that something hasn’t felt quite right since he returned as manager for a second time, an indefinable, intangible sense of unease that has hung over the club, a pervasive air of anxiety that not even a run of victories and a five-point lead at the top of the table has been able to eliminate or even alleviate.
At its core is trust. Or, more specifically, a lack thereof. A fan base that worshipped Rodgers like a messiah during his first stint in charge, only to be burned by the haste and manner of his departure, appears hesitant to become overly invested the second time around, lest the same thing happen again.
A board of directors may be of a similar mind, unwilling or unable to provide their manager with the resources required to carry out the long-term squad refurbishment he so desperately desires, leaving Rodgers to wonder how much faith to put in the hands of a chief executive and board whose frugal approach to transfer activity threatens to jeopardise his reputation and legacy. It’s a vicious cycle of distrust that can only be broken over time, with trophies and transfers.

The fabricated story that circulated on WhatsApp at the start of the week, claiming Rodgers had flown straight to a Swiss ski resort after last Saturday’s match to hold crisis talks with Celtic’s majority shareholder, Dermot Desmond, with the intention of offering his resignation, was obviously false, though given the undeniable undercurrent of discontent around the club, the premise was not entirely out of the question.

Rodgers is aware of the prevailing mood among Celtic fans, bringing up the Swiss speculation himself as he sat with reporters to, ostensibly, discuss this afternoon’s away game against Aberdeen. He dismissed it with a smile, revealing that he had only travelled as far as Glasgow’s west end, but he also made the more serious point that this is only the beginning of what he hopes to be a long-term project. His face and comments may suggest otherwise, but Rodgers insists he is happy at Celtic.

“There were reports that I’m this really unhappy person and I flew out to Switzerland after the game the other day, which I found strange when I was reading it in Finnieston!” he said. “These were all the considerations I had when I returned. I wasn’t going to be that person, and I said so when I first returned because I only wanted the best for everyone here. I was not going to be in that place again.

“Sometimes I appear unhappier than I am, and that’s my father’s fault because I look like him, and he never looked happy even when he was. I’d always wanted to return to Celtic, but I knew it wouldn’t feel the same as the first time because people had been hurt.

“They probably still are. There are probably still a few people wondering, “How long will he be here?” and “Can we trust him?” But I want to give everything I have and stay here for as long as possible. If I can succeed here with the team and move forward into Europe, that will be fantastic. It’s just about finding a way through all of this and doing my best to bring people together.

“I’ve always said that if I were the main problem here, it wouldn’t be good for the club. When I leave, I will always support Celtic. But I want to be here so that I can see the short- and long-term benefits, which will hopefully carry us through this period. I was certainly not away for crisis talks.”
Celtic only signed two players in January: Nicolas Kuhn and Adam Idah, an Irish striker on loan from Norwich City who could make his debut at Pittodrie. The expectation was that several more would have joined them, and Rodgers hoped the club would be “braver” as they prepare for the summer transfer window.

“I would go along with supporters thinking we could maybe be a little bit braver in terms of bringing in another level of player but that’s up to me to try and fix that over the course of my time here,” he said.

“I believe we want to improve, and there are ways I hope to persuade us to be more risk-taking in the marketplace. When I was here before, we had Odsonne Edouard, who was worth £9 million. So we can do it. But it’s always about balance.”

Rodgers denied that Idah was presented to him as a last-minute stopgap, instead believing he is a player who will improve the squad over the next few months. And the Republic of Ireland international is excited to follow in the footsteps of his idol, Robbie Keane.

“When I found out on Monday morning, I said to my agent it’s a no-brainer,” he said. “I said I’ve always wanted to play for Celtic. We came here in pre-season last year, and it was a huge shock for me. I was like, “Wow.” This is a club I’d love to play for.

“I’ve played a lot of first-team football. I’ve been in Norwich’s first team for five years. Now it’s about getting minutes and planning the next step.”

in other news, Brendan Rodgers was taken aback by Adam Idah’s attributes.