Didier Agathe believes that Martin O’Neill and Brendan Rodgers are two of a kind.
Under O’Neill Agathe switched from Raith Rovers to playing in the Champions League following a brief stop off at Hibs.
Rodgers hasn’t managed anything like that in the transfer market but has totally revived the careers of Tom Rogic, Stuart Armstrong and James Forrest while taking Scott Brown’s game to new heights.
The end result under both managers has been a Celtic side transformed almost instantly with supporters having total belief in the man directing things from the dug out.
“When I see Brendan Rodgers, I think of Martin O’Neill,” Agathe explained to The Sun. “They have the same spirit and the same influence on players.
“Martin could get the best out of his players and make us achieve great things as a team.
“Brendan does the same and I believe he has a similar style and shares the same passion. When I was at Celtic, we played as a real team. We were strong and we had so much togetherness and spirit.
“I can see Brendan gets the same reaction from his players.
“He is the kind of manager Celtic need. Like Martin, he has a connection with the fans, but he also knows Celtic must win game after game. He understands the expectation at the club.”
In five seasons at Celtic Agathe made an incredible 40 appearances in European competitions as O’Neill’s side made their mark on the continent.
The highlight of his career was in the 2002/03 season when he played a major role in reaching the final of the UEFA Cup with his performance away to Stuttgart especially memorable.
After leaving Celtic in 2006 Agathe had a brief spell at Aston Villa before retiring.
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