Spat with Griffiths is over, insists Rodgers
BRENDAN RODGERS last night consigned a touchline spat with Leigh Griffiths to history after the Celtic pair kissed and made up. In a public show of petulance, the Scotland striker had remonstrated with his manager after he was subbed in the 63rd minute in the thrashing
of Partick Thistle. A win over Hearts on Sunday will make Celtic Scottish football’s first unbeaten invincibles since season 1898-99 but an outstanding team display was overshadowed by the tantrum from Griffiths. ‘For a minute he forgot himself,’ said Rodgers afterwards. ‘For a minute he thought about himself instead of the team. This is a team that’s selfless. ‘He’s a brilliant boy but all strikers will always be the same, so he just needed a wee reminder that this is not about him or any other individual. This is about the culture of the team. ‘But he was outstanding tonight and he understood afterwards that I need also to protect him as the only fit striker at the moment. ‘It’s gone now. Footballers just need reminders sometimes but I explained it to him and it’s gone. ‘We kissed and made up — and he gave us a cuddle as well. He’s fine. ‘So there’s no drama but with modern footballers you’ve just got to remind them, especially strikers.’ Two goals from Patrick Roberts, a Griffiths penalty and strikes from Tom Rogic and Callum McGregor levelled the 103-point tally reached by Martin O’Neill’s team in 2001-02. One more strike against Hearts will also level the 105 goals scored by O’Neill’s side in 2004. Delighted by another relentless display from his side, Rodgers added: ‘That’s 103 points, 104 goals and 33 wins, so we need one more win to beat that record also. ‘I think everyone coming here would have expected a severe test for us tonight, and rightly so because Alan (Archibald) has been fantastic this season, getting his team in the top six and being really hard to beat. But I think you’ve seen the evolution of this team over the course of the season. ‘We played well when we won here 4-1 earlier in the season but this was a different game. This was an outstanding team performance.’ The man of the match once again was Roberts, a player Rodgers would love to bring back to Celtic at some point. For now the 20-year-old is destined to return to Manchester City after another sublime individual display. ‘He is a top, top talent — I think you see him benefiting from playing within a structure,’ added Rodgers. ‘He is only 20, but having worked with big talents like the (Raheem) Sterlings and (Philippe) Coutinhos, he certainly has all of the qualities. ‘It just really depends on how many might be in front of him and how many Manchester City might be looking to bring in. ‘But he is a joy to work with and a great kid.’ Asked if it was unrealistic to think Roberts might return to Glasgow at some point, Rodgers showed signs of exasperation as he replied: ‘No, it’s not. But I think for the 20th time I’m going to say he is going back to Manchester City. And for the 20th time I will say he is a Manchester City player. ‘If there is ever a chance to bring him back, we will bring him back. That is it. That is the story.’ Partick boss Alan Archibald expressed disappointment that his side played with ‘fear’ against the champions, conceding: ‘We were lucky to lose by five. They took the feet off the gas at half-time. ‘For us it was very disappointing. We played with a fear tonight, that was there for all to see in the first five minutes. ‘They could probably have been ahead before the referee gave them the penalty.’