With questions still hanging over Brendan Rodgers’ future beyond the 2025/26 season, Pat Nevin has suggested Damien Duff could be a possible replacement, a name that’s taken many by surprise.
Rodgers has lifted 11 trophies in his time at the club, but there’s a growing feeling this could be his final year in charge.
Unless the board moves quickly to sort a new deal, a change in the dugout is firmly on the cards. Uncertainty over spending power and European ambition is only making things more uneasy.
Duff, meanwhile, doesn’t have much experience as a head coach. He won the Irish Premier Division with Shelbourne but left shortly before their European qualifiers after a poor run of league results. While he did work on Celtic’s coaching staff under Neil Lennon from 2019 until 2020, he’s never managed at the top level in Scotland.
The idea of Duff replacing Rodgers has raised more than a few eyebrows. Celtic’s recent managers have all had strong CVs and experience to back them, from Brendan Rodgers in his first spell, to a somewhat underwhelming Neil Lennon return, to Ange Postecoglou’s underrated background in Asian and international football.
Bringing in someone with Duff’s short track record would mark a big shift from that approach.
Nevin said: (Evening Times), “It would work for Damien Duff. He played for the Republic of Ireland – a big link there with a lot of the Celtic fans as well.”
“Would they like a big name sometimes? They most probably would – Ange Postecoglou or someone? But when you give somebody a good chance at that level, they’ve done their years of coaching elsewhere, they’ve done the hard yards.
“And also you give them a good job, which is right. Here’s quite a lot of money in comparison to everybody else in your league. Here’s a good team as well. It must be a temptation.
“But it won’t come down to the heart, it’ll come down to the head with Celtic. They’ll look around the world, and they’ll probably have quite a few more names. Because remember, Ange wasn’t in the top 10 in the betting when they brought him in.”
Duff being mentioned shows just how uncertain the search for a new manager could get if Rodgers decides to move on. With little experience managing at a high level, giving him the Celtic job would be a huge gamble.
The club has usually gone for managers with solid records, especially ones who’ve won trophies on a consistent basis.
The next five months will be crucial, with fans keeping a close eye on what happens. Will the board try to tie Rodgers down to a new deal soon, or wait until the end of the season to make a decision? With a packed schedule ahead, any delay could make things even harder.
Dermot Desmond and the board have a big call to make. Do they stick with Rodgers and back him properly, or take a chance on someone like Duff, who’s unproven at this level? It’s a major moment in shaping what comes next after Rodgers.
With no clear plan yet and the clock ticking, pre-season could quickly turn into a nervous wait. Whether Duff stays in the conversation or fades from the picture will likely depend on how long Celtic leave it before showing their hand.
