Loyalty. What exactly does that word mean? According to the dictionary it means "a strong feeling of support or allegiance".

There’s no doubt that fans of football clubs will be loyal to their club until the day they die. It’s just what supporters do. Through thick and thin they will follow their club.

Disappointment and euphoria occur on almost a weekly basis at most clubs. It’s all part of the pain and ecstasy of being a football fan. But what about footballers and managers involved in football? Should they have the same bonds and loyalty to the club that they work for or even support? The answer is categorically no.

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I am of course referring to the Brendan Rodgers saga that has dominated Scottish football since he left Celtic suddenly just under a week ago for Leicester City. First and foremost I understand why the Celtic supporters have been left disappointed and angry at the manner in which Rodgers left the club.

With just 10 weeks of the season left the punters will think that he should have seen it out and left the club a legend with a possible treble treble in the bag. In a matter of days Brendan went from walking on water in the eyes of the Celtic support to being a money-grabbing Judas rat who wasn’t really a Celtic fan after all. He overnight became a fraud.

But in my opinion the abuse the new Leicester City manager has been subjected to has been disgraceful and shameful. As I said I get the Celtic fans being disappointed and angry in the manner of his exit but some of the comments and even a video with so-called Celtic supporters hoping he died in his sleep have been appalling. Couldn’t it just have been that Brendan Rodgers was wanting a new challenge after winning everything in Scotland? Is that too simple a summary? Let’s break it down.

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Rodgers has reportedly tripled his salary by heading south to Leicester. Most people in any job would do that. He has joined a squad of players that in my opinion are superior to the ones he has left behind at Celtic. Yes I appreciate they pay more money so can get in more quality, but that’s a fact. Probably only James Forrest and Callum McGregor would get in the current Leicester City team. I am a huge supporter of Scottish football in general and the product we have here but in terms of the Premier League we just can’t compete in terms of finance and prestige.

It’s being realistic. Leicester City spent over £100m in the summer to strengthen a squad of players that still contains the spine of the side that won the Premier League just three years ago. Brendan Rodgers signed 10 players either on loan or on a free. That is the difference in spending power and that type of budget must be a huge lure for any manager. That’s not to say Rodgers didn’t have big money to spend in Scottish terms at Celtic because he had plenty, but when you compare it to the Premier League his budget is nowhere near it.

Fans need to appreciate that players and managers being supporters of a club is totally different. They are professional people. In any walk of life you want to get to the top of your profession whether that be as a plumber, stock broker, football player or manager. I have no doubt Rodgers loves the Celtic fans and the club but business is business. He probably felt he had hit his glass ceiling at Parkhead in terms of where he wanted to go and what the club was prepared to spend in order to take him there. There is nothing wrong with ambition. The timing of course, rightfully, has upset the Celtic fans but I don’t blame him for going because I can see it from not only a neutral standpoint but by having being involved in football. It was too good an opportunity for him to turn down.

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Football is a fickle business. If Rodgers had come up to Celtic and struggled then the fans would have been screaming for his head. It’s the same everywhere. So why shouldn’t managers who do well move on to a higher level? Yes Celtic are a far bigger club than Leicester City but they don’t operate week in, week out at a higher level or get tested nearly as much. Managers and players want to test themselves against the best. It’s the same with players. If they aren’t doing the business they are surplus to requirements and binned without a second thought. Yet when they do well and move on to a higher level the fans scream he has no loyalty to their club and boo them on their return. You can’t have it both ways.

I hope in the cold light of day when things calm down the Celtic fans will appreciate what Rodgers did for their club and maybe change their opinion. He won everything and had the glorious invincible season that may never be repeated. Brendan certainly didn’t deserve the vitriol aimed at him. His timing could have been better but if that is his only mistake then surely he will be forgiven. What he achieved at Celtic should never be forgotten.

AND ANOTHER THING . . . 

A bottle was thrown onto the pitch at Easter Road at the weekend which yet again has put fans behaviour at games into the spotlight. We should have been talking about a sparkling Celtic Performance and two outstanding goals but yet again morons have taken the gloss off it. I hope Hibs find the culprit and not only ban them for life but get them lifted. There’s no place for that in our game.