Boss salutes history Bhoy Roberts for his decision to stay on and try for Treble glory
BRENDAN RODGERS hailed Patrick Roberts’ decision to choose history-making with Celtic over a World Cup with England after watching the on-loan winger wow Parkhead with a double against St Johnstone yesterday.
The 20-year-old Manchester City star scored twice as Celtic extended their unbeaten domestic run to 43 matches in all competitions this season with a 4-1 victory. The win leaves them with three more league games and a Scottish Cup Final clash against Aberdeen to overcome to complete the Treble and a campaign as ‘Invincibles’.
Roberts could not be in better form for that bid, so Rodgers was delighted when the player confirmed he had rejected the chance to represent his country at the Under-20 World Cup in South Korea later this month.
When asked if he left Roberts to make the call or tried to influence the decision himself, Rodgers replied: ‘Of course I tried to influence it! Celtic are paying his wages until the end of May. I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t.
‘But if I thought it was really against what he was wanting to do — then I’d have had to convince him even more!
‘It’s a difficult one for the kid. He loves playing for his country. He’s an English boy, played through the age groups, helped them get to the World Cup. So he has to think about it. Not many players get the chance to go to a World Cup Final.
‘But it really shows you the environment and the feeling around Celtic
that he wants to be here and part of this fantastic season.
‘Hopefully, we’ll finish it off with a real bit of quality by winning the (Scottish) Cup.
‘It tells you everything about his enjoyment here, and how he wants to be part of hopefully creating some history. And you don’t get the chance to do that too many times in your career either.’
Roberts revealed that his England coach, Paul Simpson, was understanding of his desire to remain at Celtic.
He said: ‘Playing for my club and country are both proud honours for me, so it is never easy.
‘But the chance to play for the Treble and make history at this club is important to me. That’s what I came here to do and what I want to finish doing.
‘Paul was great with me. He knew the situation and understood what it meant for me to play in something like this. Obviously, I wish the boys a huge good luck.’
St Johnstone boss Tommy Wright agreed that Celtic were class acts on the day as his men were unable to repeat their post-split success over the champions of a year ago.
‘It was a hard afternoon for us,’ he said. ‘Celtic were excellent. They are wiping the floor with everybody this season. At 4-1, with 15-20 minutes to go, it could have been worse but we defended and saw the game out.
‘The players put in a lot of effort. I can’t be too critical of them but we are disappointed with a couple of the goals we conceded.
‘There’s a difference with Celtic this year. There’s just a mental strength, as well as the quality all over the pitch.’