A WORD TO THE WISE
Rodgers: Derek had a tough time at Bristol but he’s proved he can be a success in England again
BRENDAN RODGERS insists Derek McInnes has earned another crack at England and is backing the Aberdeen boss to land a top job down south.
The Celtic gaffer reckons his Premiership rival will have learned from a bitter experience at Bristol City where he was axed after 15 months in charge with the team bottom of the Championship.
Rodgers is full of admiration for the way McInnes has bounced back to rebuild his managerial reputation during four successful years in the north east.
The Hoops boss takes his side to Pittodrie tonight where the six-in-a-row champions will put their unbeaten domestic record on the line in a dress rehearsal for the Scottish Cup Final.
And the former Liverpool and Swansea manager said: “Derek can get another chance in England – it’s just about timing.
“He is happy – when I speak to him he is very happy at Aberdeen. He sees a plan going forward there for a new training ground and hopefully a new stadium.
“He will have seen Bristol City as a difficult gig. In football you are going to be up and down but you have to have that ability to pick yourself up and go again.
“To pick himself up and go and do the job he has done – he has done a fantastic job.
“He is a very good manager. He was unfortunate more with circumstances at Bristol City.
“You think of his management career and what he did up here before he went down.
“Bristol City at that time were going through managers. Steve Coppell went in there as a pretty prestigious manager and it was very difficult.
“He wasn’t there that long before he left – he obviously saw issues. Bristol have done the stadium now and got a young manager in Lee Johnson who has done a great job.
“It’s all about timing and at that time with Derek it was difficult.
“But can he go to England and work in a big job? Of course he can – 150 per cent he can.
“He has gone into Aberdeen and really imposed his way of working. I can look at it closer since I’ve been here to see the job he has done.
“I mean they haven’t got a training ground – that is something fundamental you need if you want to develop players to the level Aberdeen’s expectations will be – so he is developing players without having a stable environment for them to come into. He has made them very competitive.”
Rodgers heard the predictions of Rangers being Celtic’s closest challenger this season. However, for the third season on the trot it’s the Dons – albeit 27 points behind – who will finish best of the rest.
And while the Parkhead boss has tipped McInnes for a return to England he believes there is still plenty he can achieve at Pittodrie
if he wants to stick around in the Granite City. Rodgers said: “At the start of this season the drums were being beaten quite loudly that Rangers were going to come in and win the league or certainly be the closest challenger.
“But Aberdeen are sitting nine points clear in second place having been consistent. We’ve played them four times and they have all been tough games.
“He has done a brilliant job. Aberdeen looks a great city and a passionate football city.
“He recruited well last summer, adding to the boys who are very much in tune with how he works. They have performed well for him though some may leave in the summer when there is a good chance to go again. But how he has done that in the time he has been there is exceptional.
“Has he taken them as far as he can? You hear that phrase bandied about but what does it mean? Well he will want to do consistently well and take them as far as he can.
“He will finish runner-up again and this year the standard has been consistently very good. It’s not easy to achieve. I knew of Derek as a player – I knew him at Rangers, I knew him at West Brom – and he is a conscientious guy and very diligent.
“Him and his support team have done a very good job. We spoke when I was at Liverpool and he was at Bristol City. I also spoke to him when he went to Aberdeen.
“Derek speaks about the game really well. What I was impressed with initially was he was all about development – he wasn’t scared to put a young player in.
“I was happy to recommend one or two players to him. I gave him Danny Ward at Liverpool. I wanted Danny to get experience because I felt he had the chance to be a really good goalkeeper.”
The two gaffers will go head to head again in 15 days’ time but Rodgers doesn’t believe tonight’s meeting will have any bearing on the Scottish Cup Final.
He said: “We’ve won four times against Aberdeen and they were all tough games.
“Irrespective of the result we’re peaking to get to the Scottish Cup Final. Derek isn’t overly happy with the pitch at Pittodrie but we’ll deal with whatever we’ve got.
“It’s another game we want to win and it won’t have any relevance on the Cup Final.”