Brendan Rodgers has revealled that John Kennedy, who was speculated to be moving to Spurs with former Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou, will be staying at Celtic and will be his assistant manager.

However, before Rodgers engaged in talks with the Hoops, Kennedy had approached the former Celtic manager and asked for his advice.

Rodgers, who had a close relationship with Kennedy during his first stint at Celtic, was quick to ensure that Kennedy stayed at Celtic once he was offered the managerial role.

When the Northern Irishman knew that there was a possibility that he could be headed to Parkhead, he made sure to talk to Kennedy and attempt to keep him in Glasgow. The discussions went well, with the former Celtic defender announced as Rodgers’ assistant, stepping up from the First Team Coach role he had when Rodgers was at the Hoops for the first time.

Rodgers revealed Kennedy’s approach for advice, saying: [SunSport]

“I spoke to John on it initially but at that time I wasn’t in discussion with Celtic.

“We had close relations and I helped him when I was here before. I’ve always been there for him.

“When he spoke to me I was aware of his situation, but as soon as I realised there was a possibility for me to come back here I made sure to call him.

“John’s very underrated. First and foremost he’s a top guy who’s very humble but works tirelessly. He’s got great innovation as a coach and I can trust him.

“When I first came here I did a lot of the coaching for that first year — so everyone could see the philosophy and how we would work.

“But I know I can come in this time and trust him to control that aspect.
“While I set the vision and the strategy and will coach, I know he will understand exactly where I’m at because of our relationship and how we worked before. I’m really happy he decided to stay.”