Brendan Rodgers has hit back at criticism of Adam Idah in the media after the Irish striker was videoed on social media on a night out in Glasgow midweek, with Rodgers revealing at his Friday press conference that Idah and the Celtic squad had Thursday off — meaning that Idah enjoyed a night out with no training the next day, and therefore had done nothing wrong or unprofessional.

It’s a story that certainly grew arms and legs, or if you’re Brendan Rodgers, you might highlight the added salt and pepper from the media. Footballers have often enjoyed their downtime away from the pitch without the constant pressure of social media — a time when their every move wasn’t filmed or scrutinised.

Think back 20 or 30 years, word may have spread that Idah had enjoyed a night out, but it wouldn’t have been seen in the same light. It certainly wouldn’t have caused such a stir, making things even more difficult for the Irishman.

However, Rodgers stepped in and made it clear that there was no training the next day, emphasising that the situation had been blown out of proportion.

Rodgers would also highlight Idah’s work ethic and mentality, noting that the Celtic forward works hard on his diet and off-the-field training. It was clear that Rodgers had no issues, and he stressed this at Hampden yesterday.

He said: (BBC Radio Scotland), “There are always stories out there, but naturally you assess it, take it on board and you take it from there.

“Adam, with his time with me, he has been a fantastic professional. I read the stories about being sick in the taxi, he wasn’t actually sick in the taxi.

“But, naturally, people add salt and pepper to all these things, then it’s a lot bigger deal than it actually was.

“He has trained well this week. I have got no issues with anything like that. I have had issues before with players taking out teams, and stuff like, but this was never the case. He is ready to start and perform.”

Rodgers has been around long enough to know how these things go. He’s seen it all as a manager, and a player going out on the night before day off isn’t a big deal to him.

The key thing is that it didn’t affect Idah’s performance — he scored four days later, showing there was no hangover and no issue. Rodgers clearly wasn’t worried, and neither should anyone else be.

Rodgers has likely dealt with players going out the night before training at some point in his career — and back then, he would’ve dealt with it sharply. He’s always been clear about the standards he expects.

That’s why it’s disappointing to hear extra salt and pepper added to the story, with false claims that Idah was sick in a taxi. Rodgers was quick to dismiss that as nonsense and made it clear there was no issue.