SAYS JOHN KENNEDY
JOHN KENNEDY always felt Celtic was a giant.
The way the club has dealt with the shocking departure of Brendan Rodgers has just confirmed his view.
Kennedy was one the few looked in the eye by Rodgers and told to prepare for his exit to Leicester at the beginning of 48 hours which rocked Parkhead.
The supporters were devastated at the disappearing act, yet the response from inside the club was emphatic and assured.
No sense of panic, no loss of composure, no collapsing of the card house.
There isn’t a single person bigger than Kennedy’s club and the new assistant boss says that point was rammed home over the subsequent 48 hours.
Business as usual. People doing their jobs, keeping the head while the players delivered on the park for interim gaffer Neil Lennon with a thrilling late win over Hearts to keep them eight points clear of Rangers in the title race.
Kennedy insists events of this week are testament to the strength and size of Celtic at a time when the club’s stature was called into question by Rodgers’ decision to defect from the top of the Scottish game to the middle of the English Premier League.
He said: “In terms of what we stand for, the stature and the support, we still see ourselves as a giant.
“I can be biased because I’ve been here my whole career and I’m a Celtic fan but I see it as a massive club. Other people will see it differently.
“What stamps it for me is that even when a huge character, leader and manager in Brendan has left the building, the response I saw in the stadium and around the training ground was positive.
“People almost thought, ‘No, we’ve got a club to continue running here.’
“While there’s a change at the top, there’s a lot going on behind that.
“The support and the staff have been terrific BY CRAIG SWAN since Brendan left, pulling together. It’s a strong group.
“Brendan did a terrific job in his two-and-a-half years but the club is in a very good place and the staff are all solid and reliable.
“There will be a lot of emotion out there. But what I want to do is make sure we spin it positively.
“Brendan was very successful. We are grateful for that. But we are a massive club and we move forward.”
Kennedy’s a modest man but he is key to the transition.
In truth, he might actually be the most important person in the football department right now.
Kennedy is the link. The one the current squad know and new manager Lennon knows. He knits it together.
Ensuring there is no disruption to the methods the players have used day-to-day for eight months of this term under Rodgers and helping them to implement the style of Lennon over the next two.
It’s a huge responsibility but one that excites Kennedy instead of scaring him.
He said: “In terms of the pressure and everything that goes with it, things would be harder to rebuild if the team had a lack of confidence.
“No matter what role you are in, you can always take things from it. Brendan, in how he implemented what he wanted and how he structured things, is someone I will take a lot from.
“In terms of his management style, it was good to see. I’ve seen Neil work, I’ve seen Ronny Deila work, I’ve seen Gordon Strachan
“This is another great opportunity for me. I don’t envisage my own role changing too much.
“My title has changed but on a day-to-day basis, myself and Chris Davies would do a lot of the training anyway.
“Whether you’re assistant or first-team coach, it’s important everyone pulls together to deliver what the manager needs.
“I’ll continue to do that and with any role, I’ll give it my all.”
Kennedy’s assurance acted as great comfort to the squad at the beginning of this week and, ultimately, it’s making sure they keep producing.
One of his first acts was to sit them down and tell them that, although Rodgers was the public face, it was they who won back-to-back Trebles and were putting the club on course for a third.
Kennedy said: “When the players came in to the news, it was a case of, ‘What’s going on?’
“So I was honest with them and told them the situation. “The response in training was very positive. There was almost a cause for them because they want to prove we’re as strong as ever.
“A manager leads it but players are the most important
people.”