New win for opposition

are in attack when you play back, in order to go to the side to go forward.

“Early on when I came in, if the ball wasn’t going forward, there was a little bit of nervousness amongst the supporters.

“Now I think they understand how we are working.

“They know they need that bit of patience when we are trying to break down teams in order to win the game.”

Worryingly for the rest of Scottish football, Rodgers pledges Celtic will get better still.

Three or four quality signings are planned for the summer transfer window ahead of next season’s Champions League qualifiers.

He also says he expects to see the players he already has at Celtic Park get better and better.

“The improvement has to continue,” he said.

“The key for me this season was to try to find a clear way of playing.

“We had to define a way of working where we have a defensive philosophy and an offensive philosophy and really impose that on the team.

“Then, as we go through the season, I look to the summer and to getting a few players who can really increase that level of the output and add to a real good core.

“But I look through the team and can see players who can all go up to even higher levels of performance.

“I’m talking about the likes of Kieran Tierney – a brilliant young player already – Dedryck Boyata, Stuart Armstrong and Tom Rogic.”