The Celtic board should have been bending over backwards for Brendan... he had the right to demand players, demand money was spent

Stiliyan Petrov reckons the Celtic board should be bending over backwards to keep Brendan Rodgers at the club beyond next summer.

The Parkhead boss sees his contract run out at the end of the season and, despite voicing concerns over a disappointing summer transfer window, Rodgers dropped hints last week that he would be open to extending his second spell at the club.

It’s a message the Celtic board should take note of, according to former club favourite Petrov. Asked if the Scottish champions should be pressing to keep hold of Rodgers as manager, the former Celtic midfielder replied: ‘Of course.

‘I believe Brendan Rodgers deserves that. He’s a very good, strong coach who knows what he wants and he’s proven around the world how good he is as a manager. So he had the right to make demands to ask for players, to ask the club to spend money.

‘Obviously, there’s a risk with that, but I believe a strong manager should do that. The club and fans should be proud that they have a strong manager who wants the best for the club.

‘The good thing for Brendan Rodgers is that he’s a proven manager and coach. He gets results and gets his team playing in a certain way. Managers like that will always have interest from different places and countries.

‘Having him here at Celtic right now is great and I hope it will continue. You have to back the manager. He knows the club, he knows the fans and knows the demands of the job.’

While Celtic could take plenty of heart from grinding out a 2-1 win at Kilmarnock in dramatic fashion last weekend, the club can take just as much encouragement from the apparent deeper struggles of their city rivals.

‘I think the encouragement comes from the Rangers side of it,’ noted Petrov, who helped conduct the draw for Saturday’s Ladbrokes Ayr Gold Cup.

‘The takeover, new manager and the new promises are all things that probably shook Celtic fans a little bit. But it seems like it’s the same old story; the results are not there, there are big issues, questions...

‘I think Celtic are sitting in a quite comfortable position but they can never take their eyes off it because you have to dominate. And to do that you need to add quality players and you can’t stop at the highest level.’

Celtic travel to Firhill on Sunday to take on Partick Thistle in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals before a trip to Belgrade on Wednesday night to face Red Star in their first Europa League match.

With the shock Champions League play-off defeat to Kairat Almaty of Kazakhstan still stinging, Petrov insists Europe will shape Celtic’s season.

‘There’s always drama in Scotland,’ he said. ‘I completely understand that fans want Champions League football after some good performances last season, pushing Bayern Munich close.

‘I think everyone expected Celtic to be in the Champions League this season on the back of that but it was really disappointing for the fans, and the pressure came from there.

‘I think there are a lot of protests against the board, a lot of unhappy fans, but that’s normal in football. When the fans demand success, new players and investment then that’s part of the game. There’s nothing strange about that.

‘You have to deal with it. People talk about the board and manager, but the players play the key role by winning games. If they have a good European campaign and continue to dominate domestically then all will be forgotten.

‘With all the pressure and all the negativity everywhere, I think the Europa League will be the compass of the season. If Celtic start well then everything can fall in place and the past will be all forgotten.

‘I think Celtic have a good opportunity. All the teams they are playing are of a similar quality, so they have to be strong. It’s a tough first game and Brendan knows what you need to be successful in Europe.

‘You need consistency and you need wins. You have to be prepared and I think this team is ready. The excitement of (Seb) Tounekti can help. He has that creativity and trickery that Celtic need.’