BRENDAN RODGERS did not sanction the appearance of 13-year-old Karamoko Dembele for Celtic’s development team and has made it clear he was unhappy such a young player was put in the public spotlight.
The Celtic manager is believed to have been on holiday overseas when Dembele was put on for the last nine minutes of a match, a story which quickly went around the world, and he will now take charge of this delicate situation and the player will not be seen against for some time.
Rodgers was careful not to blame his academy coaching staff, Chris McCart, Jim McGuiness and Tommy McIntyre, and praised their work saying “it’s not an issue, it’s not a problem, but it’s certainly something going forward that we will manage.”
Read more: Brendan Rodgers loves and lives for the psychology of football
And it will be the Northern Irishman who decides where and when Dembele plays his football from now on
Rodgers admitted: “I didn’t know he was playing. Would I have sanctioned it? That’s not the point. The point is he’s played. In the modern world, everything is a story. You just have to be very careful.
“He is a kid. That’s what he is. He’s not a 13-year-old in the body of a 19-year-old. He doesn’t have those maturation levels. He really looks 13.
“As much as what his ability is and how fast he is, the worry for me when I saw it was if a 25-year-old tackle him. I’m a father and as good as they are, I worry from a parent’s perspective. But he’s a talent and it will be managed going forward. Will I take a more hands-on role? Yes.”
Read more: Brendan Rodgers loves and lives for the psychology of football
Ruud Gullit spoke last week about how impressed he has been by Dembele whose brief appearance has made the English FA take an interest as he was actually born south of the border.
But Rodgers would rather kill the hype until the boy is ready to make the next step-up having seen so many other would-be superstars crash and burn while still in their teens.
The Celtic manager said: “He is a child, he’s a baby. He’s a talented boy at 13 years of age and has had a lot of attention. But he just needs to be left alone to develop. Then hopefully he can go and achieve, and make the steps we want him to.
“I took him in for one session early on in my time here. When I arrived, I’d heard about his talent. It was a light, technical session and you can see how diminutive he is.
“He’s obviously a talent but he’s young and there is so much development and so much needs to happen for him to go on and become a player. At this moment in time, he’s a big talent, we have to nurture it and ensure he is challenged – at the right times.
“I could go through a million kids who I’ve helped develop and seen. You have to be calm with them, you have to respect their talent. You have to challenge them but there is also a huge psychological side of it, especially in the modern world with social media.
“I don’t do any of it, nothing. But it must be really difficult growing up now and if you are a talent then the minute you are, people want to knock you down.
“He’s a great kid and has a good family. I had them all at Lennoxtown and we had a chat and they are happy so we need to manage that. Ultimately you want him to play for Scotland, you want him to play for Celtic and he needs to be left alone otherwise he becomes a statistic. There are so many, both in Scotland and what I have seen down south, it’s not always the gold medallists who make it.”
Read more: Brendan Rodgers loves and lives for the psychology of football
Rodgers also expressed sympathy with Gordon Strachan whose time as Scotland manager could well be in its final days after the national side took one point from their games against Lithuania and Slovakia.
“It’s difficult for Scotland and I have sensed that even though I’ve only been here for a matter of months,” he said. “I sense there is this huge expectation but my own feeling if there needs to be a reality check in terms of where Scotland sees itself. You are not Scotland of the 70s or 80s, the reality is that international football is very tough. It’s not an easy game.
“I read some stuff that Scotland should be going to Slovakia and winning comfortably but why? They have good players as well so it’s tough and I have empathy for Gordon. The manager always gets criticised but he should be one of the last ones.”
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