IN the unlikely event that Brendan Rodgers is tempted to leave Celtic for a club in England or abroad this summer, the high esteem that he is held in by supporters of the Parkhead club will be unaffected.

Leading Celtic to an unbeaten domestic treble – an unprecedented feat that resulted in his side being dubbed The Invincibles - in his first season in Scotland assured his place in their long and storied history.

Taking the club he had grown up supporting in the village of Carnlough in County Antrim into the Champions League group stages twice and the knockout rounds of the Europa League this term has enhanced his reputation further still.

Should his men overcome their top flight rivals Motherwell in the William Hill Scottish Cup final at Hampden this afternoon, as they are widely expected to do, then his legend will increase palpably.

He will have done something that nobody who has occupied his position before, not Willie Maley, Jimmy McGrory, Jock Stein, Billy McNeill, Davie Hay, Wim Jansen, Martin O’Neill, Gordon Strachan or Neil Lennon, was able to achieve by over-seeing a double treble.

Yet, Rodgers confessed yesterday that, despite all of his remarkable accomplishments since moving to Glasgow two years ago tomorrow and the adulation which he has received in that time, the fear of being branded a failure at his boyhood heroes is what continues to drive him.

The 45-year-old revealed he has given no consideration to what a victory today would mean to him personally. He has focused exclusively on ensuring his side perform to their best and lift their third trophy of the 2017/18 campaign. Avoiding defeat is always uppermost in his mind.

“I haven’t really thought about what it would mean for me personally,” he said after he finalised his preparations at Celtic’s training base outside of Lennoxtown. “My happiness would be for the players, for the supporters.

“It’s a chance to create history in the club and that’s great. But I haven’t really thought about it too much. If we can get our sixth trophy in two seasons it would be absolutely amazing, but the thought is about performing in the game.

“I tend to take the emotion out of it, because if you go down that road it can come back to you when you reach a point in the game when you have to make a decision.

“My job, as I said when I first came in, was to inspire supporters and give them some great memories. If we win, that will do that for them.

“For me, I said last year that at least I knew that whenever the time was to leave here I knew I wasn’t a total disaster. That is always the fear.

“You come into a club you support and you’ve got to be with friends and family for the rest of your life once you’ve gone saying you were hopeless. At least I have got something to show. Above that, I never think so much.”

Rodgers, the former Watford, Reading, Swansea City and Liverpool manager, has been installed by bookmakers as one of the favourites to succeed Arsene Wenger at Arsenal during the close season.

Yet, having experienced the harsh realities of life in the dugout in the Premier League down south – he was sacked at Anfield little more than a season after almost leading them to their first title in 24 years – he will not be prised away easily.

He appreciates what he has at Celtic is highly respectful of the standard of Scottish football and is dismissive of those baulk at his accomplishments, down south especially.

“It’s something you can’t really change,” he said. “For as long as I can remember there has always been that look up from England that the game is better down there. The perception is never the reality. I think coaches, managers and people within the game understand the difficulties of it.

“They understand the complexities of trying to re-energise things after what we achieved last year. Players who ran 15 metres to press a ball last year might only want to do 10 metres this year. But you know you still have to get them going and pressing.

“It’s not anything to worry about. There are some great clubs up here and it is a competitive game. Our job is to win and that’s what we aim for.”

Rodgers is confident the taste his players have had of such occasions both last season, when they beat Aberdeen 2-1 in the Scottish Cup final courtesy of an injury-time Tom Rogic goal, and this will prove invaluable in their final match of what has been another memorable campaign.

“There is a different feeling this year because of that experience that the players have gained,” he said. “You can anticipate a bit more how it will all work out. But certainly when we get up on Saturday morning and get ready knowing we are coming in to a really special occasion then of course the adrenaline will start to kick in. But we had a wonderful experience last year. It was fantastic to win it and to win the treble was a real special occasion.

“Over the couple of seasons that we’ve been here I’ve been really pleased with seeing that growth and development in the high-pressure games. The level of their football in those games and how they’ve stayed calm and controlled in them is key.”