Ange Postecoglou 'agrees terms' with Spurs, John Kennedy's Celtic future, Brendan Rodgers return answer

Ange Postecoglou has taken a further step towards the Celtic exit door after agreeing terms with Tottenham Hotspur after the Premier League club were granted permission to speak to the Australian.

The 57-year-old recently emerged as the No.1 candidate for the vacant managerial role at the North London side. The move progressed and he is expected to become the new Spurs head coach having led Celtic to a domestic treble, with an announcement possible this week.

Talks were understood to take place on Monday after Celtic had allowed the parties to enter into discussions and they concluded swiftly with Sky Sports reporting terms had been agreed in principle for Postecoglou to become the new Spurs head coach, replacing Antonio Conte. The Scottish champions will expect to net a seven-figure compensation package for the manager who guided the team to five trophies, including two Premiership titles, during his two seasons in charge.

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It is understood the former Australia and Yokohama F. Marinos boss is keen to take three members of his backroom staff with him, including John Kennedy. The Scottish Sun reports Celtic are ready to block such a move. Kennedy, who has been linked with the Hearts job, is a valuable member of the club’s coaching team and viewed as a future Celtic manager.

Postecoglou refused to address the speculation prior to and after the Scottish Cup final success over Inverness CT on Saturday. He planned to focus on enjoying leading the club to the treble “until somebody grabs me by the collar and tells me that I have to answer certain questions”.

“I deserve to enjoy this, the people around me deserve to enjoy this,” he said. “Whatever other people want to focus on and talk about, I am not going to miss enjoying this moment with this group of people. But also I owe it to my family, my friends, those people closest to me. Everyone works hard and makes sacrifices to enjoy these moments. I understand that other people who aren’t invested in it want to ask these questions, but for me right now the most important thing is that we reflect and just be in the moment of crowning something special. They deserve to enjoy this moment because, irrespective of what happens in the future, why would they not want to enjoy this moment for what it is? It is something historic.”

Rodgers return?

Celtic could turn to former boss Brendan Rodgers as a replacement. The Northern Irishman left the club during the 2018/19 campaign for Leicester City after back-to-back trebles. He left the Foxes, who were relegated from the Premier League, in April and was also linked with the Spurs job. Rodgers is currently favourite to become the next Celtic boss. Back in 2019, he revealed he would “absolutely" be open to returning as manager.

Ange Postecoglou could be set to leave Celtic for Tottenham Hotspur. (Photo by Ewan Bootman / SNS Group)Ange Postecoglou could be set to leave Celtic for Tottenham Hotspur. (Photo by Ewan Bootman / SNS Group)
Ange Postecoglou could be set to leave Celtic for Tottenham Hotspur. (Photo by Ewan Bootman / SNS Group)

"That challenge may come again because it was a real challenge to go in and that challenge may come in the future and I would have absolutely no hesitation going back,” he said. "Incredible club but like everything in life it's just about timing. Whether I would be received back or not is a different story. But would I go back to Celtic? Absolutely."

Other candidates could include former Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch and West Ham United head coach David Moyes.

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