Brendan Rodgers has stepped down as Celtic manager following a rocky start to the new season at Parkhead, with former managers Martin O’Neill and Sean Maloney taking over on a temporary basis.
Celtic’s majority shareholder Dermot Desmond has launched an incredible attack on Brendan Rodgers after he quit the club.
Rodgers’ second season at Celtic ended with Sunday’s 3-1 Premiership defeat at Hearts, leaving them eight points behind the Edinburgh side. Former bosses Martin O’Neill and Sean Maloney have been appointed on a temporary basis at Parkhead. Celtic said in a statement: “Celtic Football Club can today confirm that Director of Football Brendan Rodgers has tendered his resignation. The club has accepted this and Brendan will resign with immediate effect.”
Celtic added: “The club would like to thank Brendan for his contribution to Celtic during two highly successful periods at the club. Brendan leaves Celtic grateful for the role he has played during the club’s continued period of success. We wish him continued success in the future.”
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“The process to appoint a new permanent manager is underway and the club will update supporters on this matter as soon as possible. We are pleased that former Celtic manager Martin O’Neill and former Celtic player Sean Maloney have agreed to take charge of Celtic’s first-team affairs during this interim period. Further details will be confirmed shortly.”
It was all very well – until Desmond delivered a surprising farewell, accusing the outgoing Celtic manager of betraying his trust.
Mr Rodgers repeatedly took aim at the board over the club’s summer operations, with furious fans mounting pressure on the hierarchy to have him sacked. This has led fans to demand answers from major shareholder Desmond, CEO Michael Nicholson and chairman Peter Lawwell. Now, in an incredible statement, Desmond went on a rant.
“I would like to thank Brendan for his contribution over two spells as manager, during which he was instrumental in the successes that form part of the club’s modern history.
“However, we must also express our deep disappointment at the developments in recent months. When we brought Brendan back to Celtic two years ago, it was with complete trust and belief in his ability to lead the club into a new era of sustained success.”
“Unfortunately, his actions and communications in recent months have not reflected that confidence. In June, Michael Nicholson and I informed Brendan that we would like to offer him a contract extension, reaffirming the club’s full support and long-term commitment to him.”
“He said he needed to think about it and get back on track. But in the press conference afterwards, Brendan implied that the club had not committed to offering him a contract. That was completely untrue.”
“We have met with Brendan on a regular basis, including in December last year and at the beginning of the summer, to discuss and agree our overall strategy, priorities and approach.
“The signing of all players and the sale of all players during his tenure were done with Brendan’s full knowledge, approval and support. Any insinuation to the contrary is completely false. His subsequent public statements regarding transfers and the management of the club were completely out of the blue.”
“Until these statements occurred, he had never raised any such concerns with me, Michael, or any member of the board or management team. In fact, he is given final say in all matters relating to football, and he has not personally identified and approved any such concerns.” When his comments became public, I sought to address them directly. Brendan and I met for over three hours at his home in Scotland to discuss the issue.
“Despite ample opportunity, he could not identify a single instance in which the club interfered or did not support him. The facts did not match his public narrative. Unfortunately, his words and actions since then have been divisive, misleading and self-serving.”
“They created a toxic atmosphere around the club and incited hostility towards management and members of the board. Some of the abuse directed at them and their families was completely unwarranted and unacceptable.”
“Everyone on the board and management team has a deep passion for Celtic and always acts with professionalism, integrity and a shared desire to succeed. Our recent failures were not due to our organization or model, but to one individual’s desire for self-preservation at the expense of others.”
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“Celtic’s structure, with the manager overseeing the football, the chief executive managing operations and the board overseeing, has brought great success to the club for over 20 years. We all share the same ambition: to ensure Celtic’s continued success domestically and to achieve further progress in Europe.”
“Every pound the club generates will be reinvested towards those goals and the continued improvement of Celtic Football Club.
“Celtic is bigger than anyone else. Our focus now is to restore harmony, strengthen the squad and continue to build a club worthy of its values, traditions and supporters.”
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