Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers relishing first trip to Tannadice

Brendan Rodgers is relishing the chance to face Dundee United for the first time as a manager when he takes his Celtic side to Tannadice on Sunday.

The Hoops boss first stint in charge at Parkhead between 2016 and 2019 coincided with a four-year spell when United were in the Championship.

And when Rodgers returned to Celtic in the summer of 2023, United had just been relegated once more, meaning he has had to wait 18 months into his current reign to lock horns with the Terrors.

“A tough challenge,” he said when asked what he expects from Jim Goodwin’s fifth-placed side on Sunday.

“I’m really looking forward to going there. I’ve never been to Tannadice, not faced them as a manager. But I know the history of Dundee United growing up from following Celtic, what they (United) were back then and how tough a place it was to go.

“But I expect a tough game as well. I think Jim’s organised his team ever so well. They mix the game up, how they play. So we go there knowing that we have to be really good in the game and that’s what we aim to be.”

Celtic return to action after a week in which they have been basking in the joy of collecting the first trophy of the season following their exhilarating penalty shootout victory over Rangers in the Premier Sports Cup last Sunday.

“When you win an epic game like that, it was a great feeling,” said Rodgers. “The players did so, so well and it was a nice feeling for them and for everyone.

“I think celebrating victories at the right moment, the right time is very, very important, otherwise, why do you do it? It was so important, especially with the free week and playing on the Sunday, we could do that (celebrate), so we gave them a couple of days just to recover physically and mentally and enjoy the victory. And then we’ve been hard at work from there.”

Celtic will be without winger James Forrest, who is facing six weeks out with a foot injury, while Alistair Johnston could miss out as he continues to be troubled by the hip injury he sustained against Dinamo Zagreb recently.

“If he misses out this weekend, he’ll be fine for the next game, but we just need to manage that injury that he had,” said Rodgers. “We’ve had a few bugs and bits and pieces going about, so hopefully they can tidy themselves up and we have most of our players available for the weekend.”