Brendan Rodgers has revealed the changes that have been made at the pitch at Celtic Park over the last year.

With Rodgers particularly outspoken over the poor quality of the pitch at this stage of last season, he discussed how he feels improvements have been made in the year since to address the issue.

He said: (The Celtic Way), “I think there’s been a lot of great work done with John Hayes and his staff.

“I think there’s been investment into it as well. The pitch is so important for us, for our football, for the speed of the game, for everything. It’s important.

“And also being the Champions League, you want to have everything in your infrastructure right and you want to have the best pitch and the best facilities.

“So, there’s been a lot of great work going on with John and his staff and investment into it. At this stage of the season, obviously with other games on it as well, it’s in a good place.”

It’s exactly the kind of influence you want to hear that Rodgers is having in his second spell back at the club, with the Irishman an experienced coach who has been there and done it at the highest level.

If he felt last season that the pitch wasn’t up to standard and needed more investment, he should be backed, and that’s exactly what the Hoops hierarchy have done, with Rodgers speaking kindly of Head Groundsman John Hayes.

The Hoops certainly benefited from an improved pitch this afternoon in a 4-0 win against Motherwell at Celtic Park.

With cold and wet wintery conditions during a fixture congestion, the Celtic Park pitch will be tested more than at any other time of the season.