IT has been mentioned among the superlatives aimed at Brendan Rodgers as his team close in on the treble and an undefeated domestic season, that one of the reasons he has been such a hit since arriving in Glasgow is that he ‘gets’ Celtic.
Of course, Rodgers is a dyed-in-the-wool, lifelong fan of the club. But despite never playing for his beloved team in his short professional career, he understands what it means to be a Celtic player. The expectation and the responsibility that comes with pulling on that famous hooped jersey. And he has been able to transmit that message to his own players.
It is of little wonder when you consider that his coaching apprenticeship took place at Reading, who at the time were managed by one of the greatest Celts of them all, Tommy Burns.
Another club legend, goalkeeper Pat Bonner, was assistant manager to Burns as a little corner of Berkshire was briefly turned green and white, and he says that you can see Burns’s influence not only in Rodgers the man, but in the free-flowing football his team produces.
Truly, Bonner feels, Burns schooled Rodgers in the Celtic way.
“My first memory of Brendan was when he was a young boy, he used to come and pick my son Andrew up in his Waitrose van,” Bonner said.
“He worked there when he was starting out as a coach and he would take my son up to Woodley Hammers Boys Club. He did a little bit of coaching there.
“He was always very interested in the way Tommy approached football. He would ask questions, he was very inquisitive and that really rubbed off on him. Tommy did influence Brendan and I do see that in his team.
“There is a lot of talk about the Celtic Way. At the Lisbon Lions event on Thursday, I listened to Martin, Neil Lennon, Gordon Strachan and Kenny Dalglish. They all have different methods of approaching that but ultimately it’s about winning games for the fans.
“If you can do it with a bit of style, great.
“Brendan has learnt very quickly how to bring the Celtic Way of playing to his team – on and off the ball. There is a responsibility on all Celtic players that you have to perform, win but also handle yourself well. That’s what they do under Brendan.”
With the 50th anniversary of Celtic’s European Cup triumph this week, it seems written in the stars that they will see off Aberdeen in this afternoon’s Scottish Cup final.
But Bonner knows that what may seem like fate, in fact has to be earned, and he sounded a note of caution to Celtic not to take their own fairytale ending for granted.
“For us it was the centenary back in 1987-88,” the legendary keeper said. “It was like a storybook – and we were the actors that had to perform.
“You can’t sit there and say they talk about it, they don’t, but it’s there at the back of the players’ and Brendan’s minds.
“There’s always a danger in a cup final that you don’t perform and nerves take over.”
Pat Bonner was speaking at a William Hill Media event. William Hill are proud sponsors of the Scottish Cup.
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