Brendan Rodgers completed an unexpected return to Celtic in the summer, a little over four years after he left the club in the middle of the season in order to join Leicester City. Not many people would have expected to see the Northern Irishman back in the Parkhead hot seat ever again let alone so soon.
It has not taken Rodgers long to win over the Celtic fans again. To be honest, the supporters welcomed him back with open arms and the reception to the appointment was mostly positive from the very beginning.
Perhaps there was a recognition that Celtic had gone out and appointed the best manager available to replace Ange Postecoglou. That is something that the club have not done very often over the years.
Rodgers was shown the exit door by Leicester City last season. And while that did not enhance the Northern Irishman’s reputation, overall, his run at King Power Stadium was pretty good. In fact, he overachieved by winning the FA Cup with the Foxes and getting them into the top four race on a couple of occasions.
Former Leicester City midfielder calls out Celtic boss
Rodgers’ run at Leicester City did not have a positive impact on everyone though. As reported by the Daily Record, Nampalys Mendy said to L’Equipe:
"“Everything was going well until (Claude) Puel got fired (in February 2019). Another manager arrived in Brendan Rodgers, and he gradually pushed me aside. I never head back. He just kept telling me: ‘I have nothing to reproach you for.’“And the worst thing is that when I wanted to leave, the club refused. In the end, I was just waiting for my contract to end. Honestly, I’ve come alive again since that moment.”"
Of course, those are decisions that every manager needs to make. And overall, the Foxes were very successful during Rodgers’ run at the club. So not many will question it.
Mendy has since left the club and finds himself at Ligue 1 side, RC Lens, where he seems to be doing pretty well. On the other hand, Rodgers is at Celtic and while his start has not been as good as the last time around, the circumstances are completely different and the Hoops still sit atop the league table.