Celtic begin their busy pre-season fixture schedule this Friday (July 4) with a visit to the City Stadium to face Queen’s Park before they head off to Ireland to face Cork City at the iconic Páirc Uí Chaoimh. And with the Champions’ preparations for the upcoming campaign beginning to pick up speed, Brendan Rodgers spoke to Celtic TV at Lennoxtown today (Tuesday, July 1) as he outlined the importance of a good pre-season for both the players and the coaches. The Celtic manager also explained the role that the pre-season fixtures will play in helping the Hoopsto get off to the best possible start once the competitive fixture list begins, a list that will include a crucial UEFA Champions League qualifier. Brendan Rodgers said: “When you drive up the hill here at Lennoxtown and you smell the grass again, it excites you about the season ahead. “In the early stages of pre-season, it’s really about the physical preparation and getting the players prepared mentally. “They don’t come together as a group until later on, but we seen the benefits of a really good pre-season last year. “And for us, from a tactical perspective, it gives us the opportunity as well to make little tweaks to keep improving and keep ticking away the unpredictability of the team. ‘Pre-season is always a tense and difficult period when you’re one of the big clubs because there are no pre-season friendlies. “I always call them tests. When you’re a big club they’re never friendlies. “Then you add in to that the qualification for the Champions League. That means that you’re trying to get to the end point that little bit quicker, because it’s something that’s very important to us. “So we’ll take that last qualification round when it comes and hopefully we’ll be in a really good place by that time.”The Hoops’ first-team squad has been added to already in the summer transfer window, with Benjamin Nygren and Callum Osmand both signing permanent deals over the last few days. There have also been returns to the club for goalkeeper, Ross Doohan and Kieran Tierney, who has returned to Paradise after a six-year spell in the English Premier League with Arsenal. And speaking about Tierney and Doohan’s return to the club, the Celtic manager touched on the importance of having homegrown talent in the first-team set-up. “The players that have come through the system here are so important,” Brendan Rodgers said. “They understand the values of Celtic and, for me, they should always be at the heart of the club. “That’s why it was important to bring back guys like Kieran and Ross, guys that have come through the system here, because they play such a huge part in keeping the culture that’s created here. “For Kieran, I’m absolutely delighted. We’re getting a top player back. Sometimes top players like that might come later on in their career, but we’re getting Kieran at 27 years of age. I was with him during the summer so I know first-hand how excited he is to be here. “And it’s great for Ross to be back. He was here during my first spell and he left to go and gain experience. He’s an international goalkeeper now. He answered the call and got his cap, which is absolutely brilliant. “I know where his heart is and I know that in bringing him back to here, he’ll make a real good contribution in that goalkeeper department for us.” Manager’s full Celtic TV interview Reflecting on summer break Managing players’ rest and recovery Memories of late Celtic legend, John Clark Pre-season preparations The summer transfer window Kieran Tierney & Ross Doohan Benjamin Nygren & Callum Osmand Greg Taylor & Scott Bain You can watch Brendan’s full interview exclusively on Celtic TV SUBSCRIBE TO CELTIC TV
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