Brendan Rodgers knew he had some grovelling to do upon his unexpected return to Celtic. His decision to ditch the Hoops for Leicester City just a matter of weeks before the clinching of an historic Treble Treble in his first stint left a bitterness in the mouth of Celtic fans who weren’t willing to easily forgive the Northern Irishman’s fickleness.
By Graham Ruthven
Rodgers spoke about building on the success enjoyed by Ange Postecoglou, but Celtic have instead regressed this season – dramatically so. This has only stoked the toxic atmosphere around Celtic Park which has seen the banishment of the Green Brigade supporters’ group, protests against the board and general discontent simmer.
Last weekend’s home defeat to Hearts, coming just one week after a loss to Kilmarnock, represented a new low for Celtic in a season that had already been underwhelming. Rodgers’ team have now lost back-to-back Scottish Premiership matches for the first time in a decade and deserved no better from either game.
Celtic have also dropped points at home to relegation-threatened Motherwell and St Johnstone this season and have ceded control of the title race to Rangers – two points behind with a game in-hand – despite the Ibrox club changing managers two months ago after a poor start to the campaign of their own.
Europe, which Rodgers publicly made a priority, was also a disappointment as Celtic finished bottom of their Champions League group, winning their only game in a dead-rubber. “European football after Christmas,” in his own words, was the aim. Instead, they are out of continental competition altogether while Rangers are into the knockout rounds of the Europa League.
Succeeding Postecoglou was always going to be difficult for whoever took on the job. The Australian raised the bar at Celtic and moulded the team on the pitch in his own image. While Rodgers technically was more successful than Postecoglou in his first stint as Hoops boss, fans certainly had more fun with the latter in charge.
Ange-ball was quick and exciting. Brendan-ball, by comparison, has felt slow and ponderous this season. A number of players who thrived under Postecoglou – see Kyogo Furuhashi, Greg Taylor, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Alistair Johnston and Reo Hatate – appear uncomfortable with what Rodgers is now asking them to do.
Furuhashi has suffered more than most. The Japanese forward was the embodiment of Ange-ball in the way he pressed from the front and took up intelligent positions in front of goal. Rodgers, however, prefers a different sort of striker who can hold up the ball and act as more of an orthodox focal point.
Recruitment-wise, Celtic have also lost their way since Postecoglou’s departure. Recent reports claim the club is preparing for a January clear-out with the likes of Alexandro Bernabei, Nat Phillips and Gustaf Lagerbielke (who only joined Celtic in the summer) believed to be on their way out.
Why, however, were Celtic so successful at finding players suitable for Postecoglou’s style of play, yet unable to do the same for Rodgers’? Injuries to a number of key players have been a factor in the Hoops’ recent poor form, but Rodgers hasn’t exactly helped the situation by chopping and changing his team so frequently from match-to-match.
“I’m not [surprised] if I’m honest,” Rodgers admitted after the loss to Hearts. “I’ve seen it within the team from time to time, I’m surprised at home we produced that level of the performance, but not so when I see the first half at St Johnstone. Then Kilmarnock away and today. It disappoints me greatly because we haven’t shown the necessary determination and the passive nature was a concern.”
Rodgers isn’t currently giving the impression of someone truly enthused by the job he accepted in the summer. Some have speculated, not without justification, that the Northern Irishman’s heart just isn’t in it. It’s only now that the scale of the task is apparently dawning on Rodgers who hasn’t cracked a smile in weeks.
Postecoglou’s appointment masked a lot of the deeper issues at Celtic. The Australian took full control of the club on and off the pitch, but Rodgers needs more help from the Celtic board and a recruitment department in need of a rebuild to point the team in the right direction again. Until that happens, Celtic will struggle to escape their current spiral.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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