Rodgers is one of the Celtic manager greats - here is what could keep him longer (2025)

Murdo MacLeod has a feeling the man in charge won't be in a hurry to give up his addiction to winning trophies at Parkhead

Murdo MacLeod is sure Brendan Rodgers will still be smarting after losing to Rangers before the international break.

But the Hoops hero reckons it will be all smiles again if his old club get back to business and claim a Treble by the end of the season.

And there’s a suspicion supporters will be grinning ear-to-ear if the manager decides to sign a new contract at Parkhead.

MacLeod insisted Rodgers has already sealed his legacy as one of the all-time great Celtic managers.

The Northern Irishman is aiming for a clean sweep of silverware this season that would take his own tally to an incredible 12 out of 13 competitions entered, to sit just behind Willie Maley and Jock Stein in the trophy standings.

Rodgers has another season on his current deal and will be out for more but while Celtic fans are already pondering what might be coming next, MacLeod has a feeling the man in charge won’t be in a hurry to give up his addiction to winning.

The Hoops hero said: “He’ll stay. There might be a chance at some point but if Brendan is enjoying being at Celtic and he’s winning trophies then he might be thinking about winning more.

“If you look at the amount of trophies he’s won in his two spells, it tells you he’s right up there with the best managers the club has seen.

“Some of the best of the best haven’t won as many trophies as Brendan has. So he is right up there.

“You don’t know what he is thinking but it could be a huge incentive to add to his total. He’s already got his place in history. The only negative would be if he left before the end of his contract again. He might get pelters again!

“But I don’t see that happening. He’s come back and won so much, he might want to stick around until the day he’s not winning any longer.

“There’s no better feeling than being at a club like Celtic, with the fantastic supporters and competing for silverware every season.”

There’s still silverware to be won this season and collecting a couple would certainly take the sting out of losing the last two Old Firm skirmishes.

Although MacLeod knows no one can brush these things under the carpet – regardless of the context.

He said: “When you are playing in Old Firm games, the players all know you need to win.

“You need to fight and make it a game. I was a bit surprised at last week, especially with Rangers, given they were on the back of the European games.

“Rangers have got stronger in recent weeks and it was big for them to go to Celtic Park and win.

“Rangers fans will be asking what is the difference between Celtic and the other teams, like Aberdeen, St Mirren and so on, who they’ve struggled against.

“Rangers came out on top against Celtic and you know what it means to their supporters.

“When I played, I wanted to beat Rangers every time I faced them – it didn’t matter where it was, what competition it was or what the points gap might be.

“If they were 20 points behind, it doesn’t matter – you always wanted to be the ones who came out on top.

“Brendan knows it as well. He knows it’s about people in Glasgow going to their work on a Monday morning after getting one over your rivals.

“A lot went wrong for Celtic. Rangers got off to a great start, they got their goal and could have been further ahead.

“Celtic came back and almost got the result but it wasn’t to be. The important thing now is they still have the chance to go on and win a Treble.

“Okay, Rangers won the derby but if you win all three trophies you are still the ones who will end up walking down the road with smiles on your faces.”

Celtic are looking to get back on it against Hearts this weekend and MacLeod is hoping captain Callum McGregor will return to the side.

The former coach and assistant knows a midfielder when he sees one and he insisted the skipper was a massive miss in the Rangers defeat.

In fact, MacLeod is convinced it’s McGregor – who has hit nine goals this term – who should be leading in the race for Celtic’s Player of the Year awards – even though the likes of Daizen Maeda and Nicolas Kuhn have hogged most of the attention.

MacLeod said: “Callum is different to any other Celtic player. He’s the one who goes and gets the ball and gets it moving. He is the one who is always in control. I’d say McGregor is Celtic’s player of the season. Others might get some of the headlines but he is the one who makes the team tick.

“A lot of these players maybe play for an hour or come off towards the end. But McGregor goes for 90 minutes, week in, week out.

“He’s also added a lot of goals this season. I always feel more comfortable when he is in the middle of the park, and you could say his absence was one of the reasons they lost to Rangers.”