Brendan Rodgers should be excited by Celtic squad - former stars and Leicester players could be targets

When Celtic fans unfurled a banner at Tynecastle Park in February 2019 calling Brendan Rodgers a “fraud” after his decision to move to Leicester City it was difficult to see a return at any point for the Northern Irishman.

Now, a little over four years later, it seems only a matter of time before his appointment for a second spell at the Scottish champions. It is understood, as per the Daily Mail, he has set making a dent in Europe a priority. Similar to Ange Postecoglou, Rodgers had a fantastic domestic record but struggled with the transition to Europe. There were nervous moments during qualification for the Champions League group stage in his first season where they finished bottom of a tough group. The following campaign they finished third but lost in the Europa League round of 32 before failing to reach the group stage in his third campaign.

There will be a hope, an expectation that he will have a reasonable transfer budget after back-to-back group stage qualifications and the club in a very healthy financial position. In roles on either side of his first spell at Celtic, Rodgers was able to spend upwards of £30million on players, including Christian Benteke at Liverpool and Youri Tielemans at Leicester City. At Celtic it was a real mixed bag, from the highs of Moussa Dembele, Scott Sinclair and Odsonne Edouard to the lows of Vakoun Bayo, Maryan Shved and Marvin Compper. His hit ratio was a lot lower than Postecoglou. A real skill was taking players he inherited to the next level, from Kieran Tierney to Stuart Armstrong to James Forrest.

Possible targets

The squad won’t need an overhaul. Already there is a group of players who fit into the profile Rodgers desires. Powerful and athletic but, equally, technically very good. The 50-year-old should be excited by the prospect of what he will be taking over. There is an argument that the squad is stronger than any of Rodgers’ three seasons. What he may want to do to make a go at European competition is add proven quality, players with European experience.

There are players who Rodgers worked with at Leicester City and who have previous with Celtic who fit the bill and are free agents this summer. Çağlar Söyüncü would be an incredible signing, the fact he appears to be heading to Atletico Madrid as a free agent suggests that. More realistic is Daniel Amartey who has been linked with moves abroad. The Ghanaian international played most of his games for Leicester under Rodgers and can fill in at centre-back or midfield. If Rodgers is looking to strengthen the defence Jason Denyaer could be an option. The Belgian centre-back had a successful loan spell at Celtic earlier in his career. He is with FC Shabab in Dubai but his contract expires at the end of the month.

Denayer is not the only former Celtic star set to be available this summer with Mohamed Elyounoussi’s future uncertain with his contract set to expire at Southampton. He would be an experienced replacement if Liel Abada or Jota are sold. While there is the case of striker Moussa Dembele. The former Celtic fan favourite is attracting plenty of interest following the expiry of his deal at Lyon.