How Rodgers ensured Griffiths stayed focussed

Leigh Griffiths has revealed that a warning from the bench inspired him on to score the goal that killed off Sevco.

Early in the second half a touvhline clash with Josh Windass ended with the former Accrington Stanley starlet being dumped into the advertising hoardings.

In some circumstances that could have resulted in a yellow card but a warning from Brendan Rodgers kept the striker in line.

With Moussa Dembele on the bench the Celtic boss wasn’t short of alternatives but with Griffiths focussed on the game the second goal was expertly executed.

Recalling the warning he got from the bench the striker told The Sun: “The manager has been calm most of the time he’s been here — that’s one of the few times he’s lost it.

“It wasn’t great to see, so hopefully I can stay on his good side now. The message was just to stay calm. At the start of the second half tempers were getting a little bit frayed, so he just told me to keep the head and concentrate on my football.”

Rodgers is very strong on discipline and makes it a priority to have 11 players on the park regardless of the circumstances of the match.

“We have seen it over many years you can get a wee bit carried away, but it’s not where I ask them to be,” Rodgers added.

“In the heat of the battle you have to stay calm. You don’t want a stupid booking. The players sometimes get carried away, but his overall performance was outstanding.”