Gordon Strachan has revealed that he told Brendan Rodgers he would last no longer than three years at Celtic when he took the job at Parkhead.
The former Scotland international managed the Hoops between 2005 and 2009, and believes that the pressure of competing in the atmosphere of the Old Firm means that anybody taking the hot seat in Glasgow has a short shelf life.
Speaking to the Times, he said: “If you can do Celtic v Rangers, you can do most jobs in the world — if you can keep sane.
“It has chewed a few people up.
“I told Brendan [Rodgers] when he got the job, ‘Three years.’ He laughed at me at the time. He didn’t make three.”
OPINION
Strachan’s comments have proven to be frighteningly prophetic, although you have to wonder whether Rodgers left Celtic for the reasons that his predecessor might have predicted. Ultimately, Rodgers probably could have kept going for some time at Parkhead with little issue. He was wildly successful, hugely popular, and probably could have had the job for as long as he wanted it. To walk away when he did was less a reflection on the trials of the job, or as Celtic as a club for that matter, and more a sign of how good an opportunity the Leicester job is. The Foxes are a club genuinely capable of challenging the top six with the right management, and you wouldn’t bet against Rodgers doing a fantastic job there. That being said, Strachan is right about one thing; the Old Firm is an atmosphere of pressure like no other. Rodgers did well to do as well as he did.