STAM VOWS TO KEEP MOORE

rush to lose the 24-year-old centre-half after he signed a new four-year contract in the summer. ‘If he is mentioned, I can understand it because he has the ability to step up,’ said Stam. ‘But if you want to build a club and go somewhere, you’re not going to sell your best players.’ Responding to a question from the floor at the Parkhead AGM, Rodgers admitted a central defender is now a priority after a run of bad luck with injuries. ‘I’ve been here two pre-seasons now and, over the course of those two, we’ve had to rejig our defensive line because of injuries and it’s not ideal,’ he said. ‘There is no doubt, for sure, that we need to get another centrehalf and that’s something we are looking at. ‘We have good centre-halves — but you need them available. ‘And availability is one of the huge things for me. A player needs to be available to play games. So there is no doubt it’s a position we are looking at. ‘It’s something where, hopefully, going forward we won’t have the same issues we’ve had over the last couple of pre-seasons.’ Springing to the defence of Israeli Nir Bitton after the midfielder filled the void against Astana and Bayern Munich, Rodgers added: ‘I know there has been a lot of talk about Nir, but he has been brilliant for me over the course of these games. ‘We all knew he was a midfield player but we were in a position where we had to try to find a way to get into the Champions League. ‘He did exceptionally well in some of the games, even the last game against Bayern Munich, when he was outstanding. ‘It doesn’t take away the fact we will still look for a centre-half, but what he did for us… ‘I felt that some people were looking to confirm their own bias towards him, in relation to him not being a centre-half. ‘In doing so they forgot the brilliant job he did for us over the course of that campaign. ‘But we want to continue strengthening the squad and want to continue in this moment as Celtic supporters and continue with this success.’ Asked by another shareholder if he intended to stick around long enough to secure ten-in-a-row, Rodgers added: ‘I love my life here at the moment. I extended my stay last season, so there is no reason why I wouldn’t be (here for ten-in-a-row). ‘We are in a great moment and a great cycle in the history of the club and my job is to add to the legacy that is already here. ‘There is a really incredible legacy, and for me and my staff to add to that we can only do that by being here for a number of years.’

READING manager Jaap Stam last night warned Celtic he has no desire to lose £5million-rated centre-half Liam Moore in the January window. Brendan Rodgers reiterated plans to sign a new defender at yesterday’s Celtic Annual General Meeting after a raft of injuries deprived him of Dedryck Boyata, Jozo Simunovic and Erik Sviatchenko for key Champions League games. Insisting he needs centrehalves who will make themselves ‘available’, the Parkhead boss has had Moore, a former England Under-21 international, watched a number of times this season. However, with his Reading team aiming for promotion to the English top tier, Dutch legend Stam says he’s in no