Former Celtic midfielder Paul Hartley spoke at Hampden Park yesterday during a media event ahead of this weekend’s Scottish Cup semi-finals, where Aberdeen face Hearts on Saturday and Celtic meet St Johnstone on Easter Sunday at the national stadium.
Hartley was asked about Brendan Rodgers’ long-term future at Celtic, following a weekend of speculation triggered by the manager’s “change the manager” comment on Friday, which required clarification both before and after the Kilmarnock match.
Rodgers has since firmly stated he is “150%” committed to staying at Celtic next season, which will be the final year of the three-year contract he pledged to complete upon his return in June 2023.
Celtic are expected to do everything they can to secure Rodgers’ services beyond that, with a general sense that majority shareholder Dermot Desmond may step in this summer to open talks over a new deal. Rodgers, meanwhile, is unlikely to be short of opportunities elsewhere.
Hartley’s assessment appears accurate, although it may ultimately be Celtic’s activity in the transfer market—signaling their ambition to back Rodgers in Europe—that plays a key role in convincing him to extend his stay beyond next season.
“He’s box office, that’s what we need here. We need to always try and talk our game up and then we’ve got to have the best managers possible for that,” Hartley said, as reported by Daily Record.
“So, I think it would be really important that, if they could keep him, then it’s good for everybody, Celtic and Scottish football. He’s got a good team there, he knows how to win. Going for another Treble again, so I think it’s really important that they try and tie him down,” Hartley said.
“There’s a lot of eyebrows raised, obviously, about how he left the first time. But since he’s come back, he’s shown that quality that he is as a manager. He did say that he’d be here for the three years, but if they could try and keep him longer than that, I think it’d be a great bit of business for the club and for Scottish football also.
“There was a lot of fans when he came back that didn’t want him back, but he’s shown how good a manager he is and how well-respected he is. He’s always been a top-class manager. In his first period here, he was outstanding and then, obviously, he left for whatever reason. Going to the Premier League and that can happen with players. If they’ve got an opportunity, then they’ve got to try and take that. But coming back, he’s shown how good he is,” Hartley added.
“Listen, when you’re the manager of Celtic, you’ve got to win. You’ve got to win trophies and that’s what he’s done. Obviously, looking to go for another treble this season.”
Hartley also believes the club should support Brendan Rodgers’ plans to rebuild the squad during the summer transfer window.
“Yeah, I think so. Obviously, they need to rebuild the squad a wee bit again. He spoke about that last week after the St Johnstone game, he wasn’t too pleased with the performance and rightly so.
“You’ve always got to try and improve and get better, especially domestically and in the European stage. But, if they could keep Brendan, then obviously Brendan can attract the top players, that’s for sure.”
