Ange wants backroom duo to stay
ANGE POSTECOGLOU has confirmed he would be happy to keep John Kennedy and Gavin Strachan as important members of his Celtic backroom staff. Kennedy, who was assistant manager under Neil Lennon, and first-team coach Strachan have been heavily involved in continuing preparations for the new season at the club’s training camp in Wales. While Postecoglou is looking to add more personnel in some departments, he has been pleased by the approach of the existing staff since he took charge. Asked if he wanted Kennedy and Strachan to stay, the Australian said: ‘I never thought otherwise. My history is if there’s good people in the building, then there’s no reason to change it just because I’ve come in. ‘So far, all the staff have been excellent and have embraced where we want
to go. I will back my judgment in all these things. At the end of the day, I take responsibility. ‘We need to add to our staff and we will be bringing in people at the appropriate time, not necessarily in the coaching area. There are other areas we need to bolster and we’ll make those decisions in the near future.’ Celtic face Charlton this afternoon in their second pre-season friendly. Postecoglou then plans to seek the opinion of senior players before deciding on a captain to replace Scott Brown. Callum McGregor is widely regarded as a front-runner. ‘Whoever your leader is, it has to be someone with similar ideals, values and beliefs that I have,’ said Postecoglou. ‘With Scott Brown leaving, it’s obviously a massive gap there. I will sit down with some good, experienced players who have been here for quite a while and get their thoughts. Then I’ll see how they are around the place and I’ll make the decision. ‘Scott Brown epitomised that, someone who puts the club and its values above all else and drives those things. That’s not new. They have stood the test of time for over 100 years. ‘Somebody who understands what it means to pull on the Celtic shirt and its history and traditions will be the person most suitable to the role.’ One player who won’t be part of Postecoglou’s rebuild is Vakoun Bayo, who has joined Belgian side KAA Gent on a permanent deal for an undisclosed fee. The 24-year-old Ivorian, who moved to Parkhead in 2019, spent last season on loan in France with Toulouse. They held an option to secure a permanent switch but Bayo has now moved to Gent. Meanwhile, Postecoglou’s first home game as Celtic boss will be played in front of 2,000 fans. Preston will be the visitors to
Parkhead for a friendly match a week today. Celtic announced that figure is the ‘maximum’ currently allowed inside their 60,000-capacity stadium. A statement on Celtic’s official website read: ‘We are using this as our own preparatory event, under Covid-19 protocols, which will allow us to use and assess all areas of the stadium. Ticket allocation has been split among season ticket holders and club contractual obligations.’
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