BRENDAN RODGERS, the Celtic manager, has warned there will be no hiding place for anyone not willing to work as he strives to take Celtic to the next level.

The Northern Irishman insists maximum effort must go hand-in-hand with the talent at the feet of his players if they are to play a prominent part of his vision for the club.

Celtic have just returned from a training camp in Dubai where they have been preparing to continue their dominant first half of the season.

Read more: Rodgers views a new dawn and a new challenge for Celtic​

The champions already have a 19-point gap in the Ladbrokes Premiership and a Betfred Cup in the bank, and their manager claims he will not accept anything less for the rest of the campaign.

He said: “I don’t know, sometimes at big clubs – especially a club like Celtic – your talent can hide you in among other good players.

“You can be hidden and you can be protected a little bit which means you don’t have to work quite so hard because your ability takes you there. No chance.

“If you’re not working here you will be out, regardless of your talent. I think I said it before a few months back: some players will struggle to keep up.

Read more: Rodgers views a new dawn and a new challenge for Celtic​

“Their talent is there but they can’t keep up with the demand. So your talent won’t be protected.

“You can be a good player but it’s not enough. If you want to be elite and you want to be the best then you have to align the work mentality with the talent. That means you push, every single game you play, and the next game is always the critical one.”