Celtic have made a brilliant start to the season, and could win their first trophy under Rodgers today.
Erik Sviatchenko has suggested that one of the most important things that Brendan Rodgers has done since his arrival at Celtic is bring the Hoops squad closer together, the Daily Record reports.
Rodgers’ appointment was met with a huge amount of optimism amongst the Bhoys supporters. And he has arguably lived up to the hype, guiding Celtic to the Champions League group-stages and well clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership.
Brendan Rodgers
And today, he has the chance to lead the club to the 100th trophy in their history as they face Aberdeen in the League Cup final at Hampden Park. And ahead of the game, Sviatchenko has outlined just how influential Rodgers has been.
“One thing is how we play but also socially – people are really helping each other off the pitch,” he said, as reported by the Record.
“They are getting close and that is a really important thing the manager did when he came in.
“He combined everything, brought everyone together and people now want to do the best for each other. The positivity in the squad shines from everyone.”
That positivity off the pitch is certainly having an impact on their fortunes on it. Although they have struggled in Europe, they have been dominant domestically.
Celtic’s Erik Sviatchenko
Despite playing two games fewer than their nearest challengers, Rangers, Rodgers’ men are still eight points clear at the top of the table, so it would arguably already be foolish for anyone to bet against them winning their sixth league title in a row come the end of the campaign.
And while today’s final will surely not be as academic – the Dons put up a brave fight against the Hoops at Pittodrie this season – Sviatchenko’s words do certainly suggest that Celtic will definitely go into the game with a huge amount of belief.
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