Damien Duff has revealed that winning 10-in-a-row put his kids in turmoil.
The Dubliner joined Celtic in January 2019 to assist Tommy McIntyre’s Development Squad but found himself thrown into first team duty when Brendan Rodgers decided to jump ship.
Duff found himself on the front line alongside Neil Lennon to the delight of his kids who stayed behind in Ireland while Dad was securing 8-in-a-row.
First team management is much more demanding than Reserve duty, with home visits becoming less frequent Duff started to get a different message from his kids.
A new job working with Stephen Kenny at the FAI proved too much to resist with Duff telling the Celtic website about the mixed messages from home.
For the first while I was away, my kids were like, ‘Daddy, Daddy, stay for nine and 10’, but as time went by, it was more, ‘Daddy, Daddy, when are you coming home?’ Celtic is one big family, but my family is here as well.
It was the best year-and-a-half of my sporting life, and I include my football career in that. It was an absolute dream with amazing people. I’m gutted, but my kids need me, which is always the most important thing to any dad.
Duff’s Celtic job came to an abrupt end when football was suspended on March 13 with Celtic having to wait two months before being confirmed as champions.
Neil Lennon is now looking for a new first team coach to work alongside himself and assistant manager John Kennedy.