Brendan Rodgers believes ‘everything is possible’ as he sets out to create even more history at Celtic.
The returning manager’s second spell in charge gets underway in earnest this Saturday with the dawn of a new Premiership season. Celtic will raise the league flag before taking on Ross County, the first hurdle in their bid to back up last season’s treble.
Rodgers won back-to-back clean sweeps after first taking the reins in summer 2016, and it was well over a year into his tenure before he lost a domestic game. Reaching such heights again would be a stunning feat, but Rodgers wants his team to believe they can achieve anything this coming campaign.
“Everything is possible,” he insisted. “Each season brings a new challenge. When I think back to when I came in here the last time in 2016, at the of it, everyone was saying it was all smooth and it was a great andd we were invincible, but it certainy wasn’t that when we came in.
“When we came in, people were talking about we’re finished. People were talking about having to be moved on. In general there was a feeling, obviously, Rangers were coming back into the league having beaten Celtic well in the Scottish Cup, even though it was on penalties.
“So there was a lot of work to do back then. Obviously, when you have success, people don’t see that and just think it’s all fluent.
“But I knew when I came there was a lot of work to do, infrastructural work, structure of the team. Ronny had a really good spell and it was about coming in, building on that and bringing it forward.
“We managed to do that but I’ve said before, that’s in concrete. It certainly wasn’t the reason I came back. I came back because I do feel as if I have unfinished business here.
“I wanted to come in and push on again with a new group of players. There is a clean slate because many I’ve not worked with before.
“I wanted to see if we could do that again with another generation of player.”
Currently, Rodgers has a lot of players to choose from. Too many, in fact. There are still in excess of 30 first-teamers on the books at Celtic, but the manager is content that there will be a natural trimming of numbers in the weeks to come.
“There will be a natural feel to the squad in the next number of weeks. Most of the players are clear on where they stand, there’s still a bit of time in the window.
“They wanted to come in and have a chance to work with the new manager, and obviously for me to assess them and lots of the players understand where they’re at, in terms of the opportunities they’ll have here.
“I like to be open with them about where they’re at, so that if they do decide to stay, they understand the conditions they’re working in. But there are some players, and it happens at every club, who haven’t quite pushed on, but then all of a sudden something happens and the world changes for them.
“I like to see that player, I like to work with that player. In terms of the group, it’ll work itself.
“There were some young players brought in at the beginning of the window based around the possibility that players might leave. Even if they don’t, they still have potential to grow.
“We don’t need them ready now, but hopefully they can grow over the next couple of seasons.
“Yeah, everyone will know where they stand. If someone doesn’t fit into what I’m doing, or not into the program, they’ll have the opportunity to leave. If they decide to stay, they will be respected. Their game time might be limited, but they won’t be wandering.
“I’ve had open conversations with a number of guys already, so they know where they fit, they know that they’re a part of the squad. If they want more game-time they may have to look elsewhere.”
