Brendan Rodgers has been handed a suspended one-match ban from UEFA following Celtic’s late kick-off against Bayern Munich in the Champions League knockout play-off on February 18.
The delay in proceedings at the Allianz Arena has now seen UEFA take disciplinary action. The Celtic manager will serve the ban only if there’s a repeat of such an incident within the next year, with the suspension set to last for 12 months.
In addition to Rodgers’ suspended sanction, the club have been fined €9,000 (approximately £8,345) for the delay, underlining UEFA’s zero tolerance for disruptions to scheduling in European competition.
While the specific details around the cause of the delay have not been disclosed, late arrivals to the pitch or prolonged team talks before kick-off have historically triggered similar punishments from UEFA.
The match in question ended in Celtic’s elimination thanks to a last gasp equaliser from Bayern after Celtic arguably played one of the best games of their season.
Rodgers, in his second spell in charge of the club, has shown he and his team can make progress in the competition.
Celtic have also been fined £7,507 for blockage of passageways in the first leg of the Bayern tie at Celtic Park.
