“It depends on what your ambition is,” Brendan Rodgers’ tactful message | OneFootball

Celtic’s 5–1 defeat to Ajax in the Como Cup might have been billed as a pre-season exercise — but for Brendan Rodgers, it delivered more than just fitness insights. It served as a chastening reminder that quality matters…

Aaron Bouwman of Ajax celebrates his goal with his team-mates during the Como Cup match between Ajax and Celtic FC at Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium on July 24, 2025 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

And while the manager was careful not to throw his players under the bus, his words still carried the necessary weight. Perhaps less subtle, than in recent weeks, and certainly more pointed. This is a squad that needs help, according to the manager, and there was an urgency emerging across last night’s post-match interviews with the press.

“I think that’s the nature of a pre-season,” Rodgers conceded post-match as reported via Scottish Sun. “It’s designed to grow, and by the end of it, you’ve had really good tests. We saw that tonight. I was seeing players on the next level and how they cope, and it’s a reminder really of the work that we have to do on the pitch and off the pitch.”

Rodgers is spot on to back his current players. No manager gets through a season without building trust in the squad at hand. And he has certainly done just that, and that’s because it is also deserved, the players have earned that support.

“The players that are here, they’ve been working so well, so hard, and you see some of the play and how they work has been very, very good. However, if you’re going to progress, then, as I said, you need to bring in quality, and that’s something that we hope to do.”

That word progress kept coming up in his post-match reflections last night. Progress, not just domestically, but in Europe. And Celtic fans know exactly what he means. After a promising Champions League campaign last season that saw the club reach the knockout stages, there’s an expectation — not just hope anymore — that the club pushes on.

Celtic FC coach Brendan Rodgers looks on before the Como Cup match between Ajax and Celtic FC at Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium on July 24, 2025 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

But Rodgers also didn’t dodge the bigger picture as reminded everyone that ambition isn’t a word. It has to be backed with action, action from the boardroom level.

“It depends on what your ambition is. If your ambition is to really progress and push forward, then we need to improve the squad. But I can’t fault the players.”

In truth, it’s hard to argue with him whatsoever. The signs have been clear this summer. A couple of excellent additions have been made in Benjamin Nygren and in Kieran Tierney. But not the three or four first-team ready, Champions League-quality, reinforcements that the manager clearly still needs, and was evidenced in that second half performance last night.

We have a team that competes, but once we move below the starters the drop off is far too worrying a dip, because when we are playing across four competitions and one of them is the Champions Leage depth of quality is essential.

And for those of us who wonder how on earth the process works behind the scenes, given the radio silence that accompanies Celtic – unless it’s social media output to sell the fans more adidas training gear – Rodgers was surprisingly candid about how that process plays out behind the scenes –

“How it mostly works at most clubs, is that you have a recruitment and analytical team that scour your markets to find the players that are suitable within your price range and really importantly, have quality.

“They then get presented to you and then it’s whether that list — whether the players — I think are right for us. If they’re not, then we’ve got to keep looking. If they are, then we’ve got to try and see if we can get the deal to get them in. And that’s obviously the club who will then do that.”

This doesn’t appear to be a manager making excuses. It’s a manager speaking frankly — and publicly — about the machinery of recruitment and crucially highlighting where the bottleneck appears to lie.

“But listen, Celtic, there are no secrets in it. There are no secrets. They will look to get the best deal for the club and get the best players in possible. My job is to coach and demand we get the highest level player we can, if we want to keep developing.”

Hyunjun Yang of Celtic celebrates their goal to make it 1-1 Ajax v Celtic, Como Cup Pre Season Football, Football, Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, Como, Italy – 24 Jul 2025Como Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia Italy. Photo Shutterstock/ IMAGO

So, the question now becomes, if it’s the best deal for the club, before best deal possible for players, then why isn’t the club matching the ambition of the man they brought in — on a premium salary by the way — to take Celtic to the next level?

Because, Rodgers is a proven winner. Not just in Scotland but also in England. He took Celtic to consecutive trebles in his first spell, and he won the FA Cup in England, he’s taken Leicester to the latter stages in Europe and was a whisper away at Liverpool from winning the EPL. And last season brought us another league title, the League Cup and oh so nearly a treble – alongside and a much-improved European campaign.

Dane Murray of Celtic Ajax v Celtic, Como Cup Pre Season Football, Football, Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, Como, Italy – 24 Jul 2025Como Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia Italy Photo Shutterstock (IMAGO)

What more does he have to prove before those in charge of negotiating transfers back him with real intent, to help him make that next leap he clearly believes Celtic as a club, and he as a manager can make?

Is it fear, or a conservatism rooted in risk aversion? Is it internal politics at play? Or are those tasked with executing deals simply not capable of operating at the level Celtic need to be at now when chasing the higher-calibre targets? Because the money is certainly there.

Rodgers has been clear, the squad has quality, he stated as much in his defence of his players, but it also needs help. He’s shown he can coach, lead, and deliver trophies. Now it’s time for the Celtic board to do their part.

Because what’s the point of hiring an elite manager if you’re not going to give him the tools to reach the heights he’s more than capable of scaling?

Niall J

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Thank you to everyone who has already pre-ordered the late David Potter’s last ever Celtic book, Celtic in the Eighties, which will be published on the fifth day of September by Celtic Star Books. The link to pre-order your copy is below…

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