Rodgers backs Celtic board but insists deals have to be done quicker

Brendan Rodgers says the Parkhead board “bleed Celtic” and insists he has every confidence they will invest in the squad, but admits deals have to be done quicker in future.

The Hoops boss said he knew his side were underprepared for their Champions League play-off that ended in a penalty shoot-out defeat to Kairat Almaty in Kazakhstan in midweek.

And while he has full respect and gratitude for how well the club is run, he has urged the recruitment team and the men holding the purse strings to get new signings in earlier to avoid any future repeat of Tuesday night.

Celtic confirmed the signing of Michel-Ange Balikwisha on Thursday, with Uruguay defender Marcelo Sarrachi also close to completing a move to Parkhead, and Rodgers is hoping for more new faces in the building before the transfer window slams shut on Monday.

Forward Adam Idah is closing in on a move to Swansea, and winger Yang is also linked with a move away, however, the manager says they can’t let anyone else go until they have replacements signed and sealed.

Speaking to the media on Friday, following the Europa League draw where they were handed tough ties against the likes of Roma, Crvena Zvezda, Feyenoord and Bologna, Rodgers said: “There is interest in Adam, but no one can leave here unless we get players in to replace them, it’s as simple as that.

“There’s been negotiations and chat around it, but I have to have players in here before I can consider letting anyone go.

“For the likes of Yang, it has been ongoing for a little while. How I understand it is when you’re a player who has mainly been used as a squad player over a couple of seasons, there becomes a point in time when you want to move on and play.

“But we have been unable to do that because I have needed Yang here, I also know that if he does stay then he has a contribution to make, because we need five or six wingers due to the number of games we play and at the intensity we want to play.

“There are so many reasons why transfer deals don’t get done, or don’t get done in time, I just know that as a manager or coach, if you can bring in a player on July 1, then he has time to adapt, on and off the pitch, then by the time you get to competitive games, they are settled in and ready.

“So, it’s not about investment, because this club will invest. We are super well run as a club and the investment is there.

“I just think we need to look at the timing of the investment, I don’t know if that goes back to recruitment, or identification, or all these different facets, but what I do know is that we have to be better at timing.

“Over the next few days I am pretty sure we will invest in the squad, but we want to get the timing of investment right to give us every single chance to be the best version of Celtic that we can be.

“We have a major owner in Dermot (Desmond) who is a super intelligent guy, we have a board of directors who bleed Celtic and want the club to do well, so everyone here is connected.

“I sometimes hear stuff about there being a disconnect, and that couldn’t be further from the truth, for me, the board and Dermot, we all love Celtic and want the club to be the very best it can be, there is a business model that works so well and I just want to ensure the football model works equally as well, so that it is fluent, agile and we keep ahead of the game.”