Nobody is going to deny that Brendan Rodgers is doing a great job at Leicester City, but history shows that there are a few warning signs about what the future could hold.
He had a fantastic start at Swansea, Liverpool and Celtic. His Liverpool team played some brilliant football and came so close to winning the Premier League, only for a collapse the next season. Similarly at Celtic, his team was utterly devastating and went an entire season without losing a game, but things started to slow down before he left for Leicester.
READ MORE: Sutton Video – ‘He left Celtic, the team he supported as a boy, to downgrade and go to Leicester. So why wouldn’t he upgrade to go to Arsenal?’
You would think that Leicester fans would be desperate for him to stay, so some of his comments recently reported by Talksport should be good news. He was speaking after being asked about rumours of taking over at Arsenal when he said:
“We’re at the beginning of something here. My relationship with the people here and the players is very strong. We think we are starting something exciting.”
So there we go, nothing to see here then right? Perhaps he is telling the truth, but a look at a Daily Record report from when he left Celtic for Leicester shows some interesting sounding quotes from Rodgers. Here’s a selection:
“I’m hopefully going to be working in football for the next 15 to 20 years but to have managed Glasgow Celtic and been here is an incredible honour. I don’t see Celtic as a stepping stone, I want to be here as long as I can.”
“There is not a place I could be in this world right now where I’d be happier in my football life and personal life.”
“I woke up here on a Monday morning as the manager of Celtic, and I’m in the best job in the world. Believe it or not the sky is blue here in Glasgow, I absolutely love it here. I feel a loyalty to them to ensure we keep moving the club forward and keep progressing.”
Obviously it would be fairly astonishing if he came out and said anything different, we all know a manager has to play things down in case they don’t get a job and it goes down badly with their current team.
The main way to judge a manager is if he backs up his words with his actions. There’s nothing to suggest he’s on the verge of moving to Arsenal at this point, but the move to Leicester also came as a big surprise. History shows he doesn’t always stick to his word, so this could be a nervy period for Leicester.