'Learn lesson': Celtic boss leaps to defence of 21y/o as he prepares to meet first £50k signing

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers wants more patience to be shown to midfielder Arne Engels from the club’s fanbase amid mounting criticism of the Belgian - but suspects that won’t be the case.

Engels became Celtic’s most expensive player in August when he joined from Augsburg for a fee in the region of £11 million and after an impressive start to life in Glasgow, the 21-year-old’s recent performances have brought flak from some sections of the Parkhead support.

Rodgers’ likened the situation to treatment dished out to midfielder Paulo Bernardo and forward Nicolas Kuhn, with the latter in particular now one of the form players in the Celtic team.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has no doubt Arne Engels will flourish at the club. | SNS Group

When asked if fans should be more patient, Rodgers said: “I know in life it is a challenge now for any of them, but I think the most recent example of that would be Paulo Bernardo. He was exactly the same, if I remember back, highlighting Paulo in his performances this time last year. Now, he can’t be cheered on loud enough when he enters the pitch. That’s called development. It’s called patience. It’s called time.

“Arne is a fantastic young player. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have brought him here. He doesn’t set the price. He’s come here to a big club to improve his game. I’ve got absolutely no doubt he will do that. But hopefully, I know it won’t be the case, but I would hope that people will learn their lesson. Seeing people that were writing off Paulo and Nicolas Kuhn, and it’ll be Arne Engels, it’ll be someone else.

“Then you have to look and see and understand that development takes time. Some will hit the ground running and be fine and adapt, perfect. But not everyone is like that, and especially a young player. So, I’ve been really pleased since he’s come in, because I know the future for him. He will improve, he will develop and get better. And we’ve seen it so many times.”

Rodgers will do his best to help Engels manage being in the spotlight. “It’s always the pressure when you come to play up here,” he said. “I think the scrutiny is on you. You’re going to have your critics. Sometimes it’s deserved, sometimes it’s not. But either way, a lot of the time you don’t have the last word, but you do have your chance on the pitch to show what you can do.

“So, I’ve got no doubt. But like every player, whether they’re young or old, you’re not immune to it. You know what’s been said. But, as I said, he only really needs to worry about his team-mates and ourselves and his development and coaching. And, as I said, he’s such a young player with a lot of potential and that’s why we brought him here. He’s not the finished article.”

Rodgers will come up against one of his former players in Don Cowie. | SNS Group

Following Celtic’s 1-1 draw with Club Brugge in the Champions League, Rodgers’ men are back in domestic action on Saturday when they host Ross County in the Premiership. A win would take them five points clear of second-placed Aberdeen and 14 clear of Rangers in third ahead of that duo’s respective games on Sunday.

Rodgers will come against Don Cowie in the opposite dugout - a man he knows well from his time as a fledgling boss himself, revealing the Staggies boss was his first signing as a player.

Rodgers said: “Obviously, Don, I know well. He was my first ever signing as a manager, when I was manager at Watford. And 50 grand, I think he was. He was brilliant for me at Watford. I’ve always been in contact with him and followed him.

“Obviously, he worked closely with Malky (Mackay) and then he’s gone out on his own, and I think he’s done a really, really good job. The game that we played up there [a narrow 2-1 win in early October], I think it could be a similar type of game. They were super organised. They all knew the job and all knew the role. And we had to work very hard at the end to get the result.”