Long stay in Europe for Hoops
BRENDAN RODGERS last night issued a fresh challenge to his all-conquering Celtic squad for next season – urging them to make sure the club is still in Europe after Christmas. The celebrations that followed only the fourth Treble in the club’s history on Saturday were still ringing round the Celtic dressing room when Rodgers stepped out to set new goals for the next campaign. He knows his team is unlikely to match the incredible 47-game domestic unbeaten run they completed with Tom Rogic’s last minute Scottish Cup final winner at the weekend, but the Northern Irishman believes qualifying for the Champions League can help his players reach new heights. But Rodgers, who knows the club’s major shareholder Dermot Desmond was claiming last week that making the last 16 should be their target, would settle for being involved in either the Champions League or Europa League – by finishing third in their group – and ensuring that Parkhead hosts more European nights in the second half of next season. He said: “We’re ten times behind budget-wise. You have to be realistic. “We want to qualify first and foremost. That will always be a challenge. Then we have to try and see what we can do. The gauge for us is to measure calmly once we’ve qualified. “We would like to find (be in) Europe for the second part of the season, whatever competition that’s in, and that’s a huge, huge ask for a club like ourselves.”