Rodgers rebuild will continue in January transfer window
CELTIC manager Brendan Rodgers has revealed he held a three-hour strategy meeting with major shareholder Dermot Desmond in midweek and feels he is in a good position to build his squad for next season’s crack at the Champions League.
Rodgers — whose side beat Motherwell 4-3 at Fir Park yesterday to lead second-placed Rangers by eight points with three games in hand — met with Desmond in London on Wednesday to discuss the next stage of his Parkhead rebuild, following a successful first six months.
He was clear when asked the reaction of the Irish billionaire when the subject of finances for the January window came up.
‘He was super,’ declared Rodgers. ‘He was very good. I had a meal with Dermot in London on Wednesday for three hours or so, talking about how we can improve and keep moving the club forward. We’re content, but want to keep pushing.’
Celtic conclude this season’s Champions League adventure with a visit to Manchester City on Tuesday, but Rodgers is already planning for next season’s qualifiers and is keen to assemble the bulk of the team for next term by the end of the upcoming window.
‘We have to look forward so, on Thursday afternoon there, we had another recruitment meeting looking at specific areas,’ he said. ‘It (January) is an important month, but you have to stay calm.
‘Strategically, we know what type we want. The identity of the team is pretty clear and all it is is trying to improve on that along with the continuing development of some of the players who are doing well now.
‘We’re thinking about the process of getting in a few players and bedding them in,
having them up and running by the time you come back in for pre-season.’
Rodgers has no fears over star striker Moussa Dembele leaving, despite growing interest and has made it clear that, during his reign, players will not be sold off at anything less than the true market value.
Virgil van Dijk was sold to Southampton for a handsome £11million last year, but he is now tipped for another transfer involving a far higher fee.
Rodgers is coy when asked if Celtic have accepted a little less than the going rate for players when selling to England in the past, but he is sure it will not happen in the future.
‘The different position the club is in now, with all due respect, is that I know the market and the level.
‘If I see a player here and I think he’s worth £30m-plus then he’s worth £30m-plus. We don’t need to shift him for £10m.
‘They don’t need the intermediate club to go. I would like to think that we can get the market value.’