Brendan Rodgers has compared managing some Premier League clubs as a holiday compared to being in charge of Celtic.
It was a fairly flippant remark but carries a strong element of truth. Rodgers has managed Swansea, Liverpool and Leicester in the EPL alongside two stints at Celtic.
Since the turn of the year there has been speculation over the future of the Celtic boss, his holiday reference can have two very different interpretations.
Perhaps after a three year stint in charge of Celtic he is in need of a holiday- or the all consuming workaholic doesn’t want to ease back.
With Celtic yet to offer Rodgers a fresh contract he will have his eyes open to what comes next.
There are plenty of challenges at Celtic with a first team squad well short of last season but everyone in football looks ahead.
A player in the final nine months of his contract will be speculated over, Rodgers is no different.
There are no great revelations in his BBC interview other than some background details.
His big ambition is to be a manager for 1,000 matches. According to Transfermarkt he is sitting on 801.
Where he is as he chases that target remains to be seen with Michael Nicholson having the option to extend the Celtic connection.
11 minutes 30 seconds
In terms of pressure Celtic is right up there with one of the most pressurised jobs in football. Even when I was at Liverpool you might have drawn with Manchester United, you wanted to win but it wasn’t the worst result.
With Celtic it is the expectation to win every single game, and not just win the game but to do it in a style that is synonymous with the club…
The mental fortitude that you have to show here as a player, as a manager, under the spotlight is huge.
You can go to quite a lot of teams in the Premier League and it (pressure) would be nowhere near, it would be like a holiday compared to here. Managing Celtic.
YouTube highlights
00:53 What football means to Brendan Rodgers
04:28 How he became a coach
06:00 Jose Mourinho’s influence
08:28 If he could relive one match…
09:56 The big turning point
11:16 Premier League pressure v Celtic pressure
13:26 One last achievement in management?
Rodgers reveals that he broke his leg as an infant but learned to play left footed while his right was in plaster.
There was an early trial at Manchester United following a stay at a Bobby Charlton Soccer School.
When his playing career was ended through injury he travelled to Spain and Holland for a coaching insight.
That developed from Reading to Chelsea, he was close to the first team under Jose Mourinho but branched out on his own at Reading.
