I was Liverpool boss, Lenny was Celtic gaffer. We sat at presser before Dublin friendly and the level of intensity that was aimed at him, at that point in the season – I found it remarkable. I was taken aback by it. I couldn’t believe it. But some of us n
heroes. Rodgers said: “I’ve known all about the Celtic fans’ expectations from when I was about three years old.
“But I once sat in a press conference with Neil Lennon as manager of Liverpool before a pre-season game in Dublin.
“And the level of intensity that was aimed at him, at that point in the season – I found it remarkable. I was taken aback by it. I couldn’t believe it.
“But it feels good to be at a club now where anything less than winning the title won’t be good enough.
“That’s what you want as a manager. If I wanted to be comfortable I could have sat out of work for another couple of years and enjoyed my Liverpool pay-off.
“Everything was nice, I travelled and played a bit of golf. But you know when you come to Celtic the pressure is there. And for some of us, we need it.”
So far, Rodgers is enjoying the so- called goldf ish bowl of life in Glasgow as an Old Firm boss. He even revealed that tat tooed Rangers fans have thanked him for being here. The Hoops boss said: “I’ve found it fine so far in Glasgow. I’ve settled in really well with my family.
“My relatives come back and forward and so far I’ve been able to hide away. I’m sure that changes over time.
“But the people have been brilliant with me – and I mean everyone. I’ve had Rangers supporters come up to me thanking me for coming to Scotland.
“Guys have shown me their Rangers tattoos. They’re Rangers fans and that’s fine, I respect that. They’ve said, ‘Thank you for coming here.’ But I wouldn’t expect anything less because the Scots are a good race of people.”
An opening- day defeat in Gorgie might mean there’s nowhere for Rodgers to hide – even this early in the campaign.
He has a lready exper ienced the Tynecastle atmosphere when his Liverpool team beat Hearts in a 2012 Europa League tie. And he’d love the same outcome in the capital this afternoon.
He said: “I’m really looking forward to the start of the Premiership season.
“It’s a real passionate crowd at Tynecastle, I experienced that with Liverpool a few years ago. I remember asking someone how many people were there that night – because there seemed to be a lot more!
“They support and back their team, which is great. It’s a tough opening game for us. That Hearts tie was tough for Liverpool, two difficult games.
“Robbie Neilson and his squad will be disappointed by the European exit and they’ve lost one or two players. But they still have a few who can cause you problems. It’s very important that we have a positive start in the league.
“Apart from the game in Gibraltar it has been good so far and we want to keep that positivity going.
“Robbie came down to see me at Liverpool for a couple of days and he’s a good guy. I always leave my door open if anyone wants to talk about football or ideas of coaching.
“When guys were out of work it’s difficult so I’d invite them down. Robbie was in work but he had only just started. He’s a really thoughtful guy.
“And he’s perfect for Hearts because he knows the club so well.
“It’s a hard challenge for him but he’s coping very well and learning all the time. We had good chats in my office at Melwood after training.”
After their visit to Edinburgh, Celtic face Motherwell on Wednesday night in the last 16 of the Betfred Cup at Parkhead.
With more Champions League exploits to come, Rodgers might have been tempted to shuffle his pack.
But as well as being hell-bent on securing the title, he insists he wants to win every prize in Scotland – including the first silverware of the season in November.
He said: “In the League Cup we’ll be as strong as we possibly can be. It’s a great marker to put down on your season early on with the Final in November.
“If we can get a trophy at that point it would be great. We’re here to win everything, as much as we possibly can.” to
ThTh ge st be
pl 11 st tw re