IT has finally happened. Celtic fans probably knew this day would come eventually, but nobody thought Brendan Rodgers’ departure from Glasgow’s East end would be quite so abrupt. On Monday night the Northern Irishman was said to have caught the gaze of Leicester City, and by Tuesday morning he was gone.
The green half of Glasgow are probably still reeling from the news, with many utterly convinced that Rodgers would be the man to lead the club to the hallowed ‘Ten-In-A-Row’. It now appears that this will not be the case, but Rodgers nonetheless leaves behind many great memories that will mean his time at the club will be fondly recounted by supporters for years to come.
READ MORE: Celtic confirm Rodgers given permission to speak to Leicester City
It hasn’t always been plain sailing, of course, but Rodgers’ reign at Parkhead will no doubt be remembered as a hugely successful one. Here are some of the highs and lows of the 46-year-old’s tenure in Glasgow.
THE HIGHS
The Unbeaten Run
Probably the first thing that springs to mind for Celtic fans when they look back at Rodgers’ time in the Celtic Park dugout. After going 585 days and 69 matches without losing in Scottish football, Celtic were finally defeated by a rampant Hearts side at Tynecastle.
Rodgers’ opening 69 domestic games in charge of Celtic were simply astounding. The run was the longest any British side has gone unbeaten in history and Celtic were truly invincible for a time.
The Invincible Season
Rodgers' first campaign for Celtic was one for the history books. Celtic won the Premiership, the Scottish Cup and the League Cup - a fantastic achievement in and of itself - but remarkably, did so winning 43 of their 47 domestic fixtures, drawing just four. Celtic finished the season with a record points tally of 106 and Rodgers’ side also scored a mightily impressive 106 goals.
Securing an unbeaten domestic Treble was an unprecedented achievement in Scotland and it is difficult to envisage the feat being repeated any time soon. It simply cannot be underplayed just how good Celtic were in Rodgers’ first season: we are unlikely to see such a dominant side in Scottish football ever again.
The Cups
Rodgers leaves Celtic having never lost, or even drawn, a single Scottish Cup or League Cup match. The Northern Irishman set a new record during Celtic’s 5-0 win over St Johnstone earlier this month, having chalked up 24 consecutive wins in domestic cup games under Rodgers. He leaves Scotland having never skipped a beat in the cups, and as a manager who was all-conquering on the domestic front.
READ MORE: Chris Sutton reacts as Brendan Rodgers leaves Celtic
Celtic 3-3 Manchester City
It feels a little harsh to include a draw in Rodgers’ greatest achievements at Celtic - particularly when there are other European games that Celtic won, like against RB Leipzig earlier in the season - but this is a game that will live long in the memory for Celtic fans. They may not have won on the night, but the fixture was one of the most entertaining and thrilling matches to have taken place at Parkhead in recent years.
Celtic took the lead three times during the match and while they could not hold onto it for very long, the attacking football on display and fearlessness that Rodgers’ side displayed made the match a thrilling contest. Of course, there have been big derby wins during Rodgers’ tenure too, but this match stands out as one of the few occasions Celtic went toe-to-toe with one of Europe’s elite and gave them a run for their money.
THE LOWS
Barcelona 7-0 Celtic
Rodgers’ first game in the group stages of the Champions League was one of Celtic’s worst results in Europe in their history and will be a night that Rodgers would like to forget about. Celtic travelled to the Camp Nou - a difficult venue at the best of times - and were torn apart by a rampant Barcelona side in full flight.
READ MORE: Celtic fans react as Brendan Rodgers leaves club
There are those that will defend Rodgers here, pointing out that a Barcelona side playing at the top of their game are capable of hitting seven past just about any team in the world. However, this wasn’t the only time Celtic were humbled in Europe.
Hearts 4-0 Celtic
The game that brought the unbeaten run to an end would have obviously been a disappointment for Rodgers, particularly the manner of the defeat. The fact that Celtic eventually lost is hardly surprising - they had to lose at some point - but few would have expected the unbeaten run to end in such emphatic fashion.
Celtic 0-5 Paris Saint Germain
The opening fixture of Rodgers’ second Champions League campaign was a sobering night for Celtic fans. Celtic fans had considered Parkhead to be something of a fortress in Europe, but this was the night where that belief was well and truly dispelled.
READ MORE: Leicester City and Brendan Rodgers could be the perfect match
This was perhaps the first indicator of what would be one of the criticisms that Rodgers’ Celtic often faced: that the Northern Irishman was tactically inflexible, particularly in Europe, and that this left Celtic vulnerable when playing against Europe’s elite.
Rangers 1-0 Celtic
Until last December, Rodgers boasted an unbeaten record in Old Firm derbies and while Celtic fans have clearly enjoyed their dominance over their rivals, Rodgers will be disappointed that his last Old Firm was marked with his sole defeat in the fixture.
Like the unbeaten run, this was a result that was going to happen eventually but Rodgers will still feel frustrated that he was unable to maintain his impressive record against Rangers. Celtic looked lethargic throughout and in truth were second-best on the day: probably the only Old Firm under Rodgers’ watch where this was the case for Celtic.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here