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Was Brendan Rodgers' Move to Leicester the Correct Move?
When Brendan Rodgers left Celtic midway through the 2018/19 season for Leicester City, he raised plenty of eyebrows and ruffled a whole lot of feathers – particularly in Glasgow. After all, he’d had so much success at the club and seemed destined for lots more, so why would he leave?
And it’s true – his tenure at Celtic had been an incredibly successful one, and he’d not even yet been there for three years. During that time, he’d led Celtic to the 2016/17 and 2017/18 league titles and was well on the way to doing the same in 2018/19. He’d led them to victory in the Scottish Cup on three successive occasions, the first time in a row the club had ever achieved the feat, and when he left in February of 2019 they’d won seven trophies in a row.
But when Leicester City came calling, the allure of a return to the Premier League was too much for Rodgers to turn down. Celtic fans were understandably upset, and Rodgers himself acknowledged the difficulty of leaving the club at which he’d enjoyed so many good times: ‘If I was making the decision with my heart,’ he said. ‘I would have been at Celtic all my life.’ He’d never intended to leave Celtic, ‘but when the opportunity came to talk to Leicester and I was able to analyse it, it allowed me to probably think that I had achieved and taken the club as far as I could at this moment.’
By nature, coaches at a professional level tend to be competitive and highly driven, so it’s understandable that Rodgers felt a need for something more of a challenge. He could have remained at Celtic and probably continued to accumulate silverware indefinitely, but the prospect of helping a Leicester City team mired in mediocrity was too attractive to ignore.
Of course, Leicester famously won the 2015/16 Premier League out of nowhere, and since then have been unable to go close to replicating that feat. They finished 12th the season after, then 9th, and when Rodgers arrived in February this year they were again sitting in 12th.
But he saw the potential. ‘It’s a young squad, a very dynamic squad that’s got great potential and you’ve got some players with real experience too’. And though he didn’t have time to do a whole lot with that potential in the 2018/19 season, he started positively enough, managing to get them up to 9thspot by the end of the season.
And it’s true – his tenure at Celtic had been an incredibly successful one, and he’d not even yet been there for three years. During that time, he’d led Celtic to the 2016/17 and 2017/18 league titles and was well on the way to doing the same in 2018/19. He’d led them to victory in the Scottish Cup on three successive occasions, the first time in a row the club had ever achieved the feat, and when he left in February of 2019 they’d won seven trophies in a row.
But when Leicester City came calling, the allure of a return to the Premier League was too much for Rodgers to turn down. Celtic fans were understandably upset, and Rodgers himself acknowledged the difficulty of leaving the club at which he’d enjoyed so many good times: ‘If I was making the decision with my heart,’ he said. ‘I would have been at Celtic all my life.’ He’d never intended to leave Celtic, ‘but when the opportunity came to talk to Leicester and I was able to analyse it, it allowed me to probably think that I had achieved and taken the club as far as I could at this moment.’
By nature, coaches at a professional level tend to be competitive and highly driven, so it’s understandable that Rodgers felt a need for something more of a challenge. He could have remained at Celtic and probably continued to accumulate silverware indefinitely, but the prospect of helping a Leicester City team mired in mediocrity was too attractive to ignore.
Of course, Leicester famously won the 2015/16 Premier League out of nowhere, and since then have been unable to go close to replicating that feat. They finished 12th the season after, then 9th, and when Rodgers arrived in February this year they were again sitting in 12th.
But he saw the potential. ‘It’s a young squad, a very dynamic squad that’s got great potential and you’ve got some players with real experience too’. And though he didn’t have time to do a whole lot with that potential in the 2018/19 season, he started positively enough, managing to get them up to 9thspot by the end of the season.
Heading into the 2019/20 season, plenty of pundits saw the capacity for the Rodgers-led team to make a jump, but a tough start to the season beckoned – the biggest test to date in the new manager’s young career with the Foxes. Now eight games into the season, it’s safe to say he’s passed that test. They suffered narrow defeats at the hands of Liverpool and Manchester United but have gone otherwise undefeated, and find themselves in fourth place with 14 points from eight games at this early stage of the season.
From all reports, the club is a happy place to be. Rodgers is renowned for his people skills and it appears he’s shown exactly why at Leicester. According to Darren Fletcher, ‘every player I’ve spoken to…said they loved working with him because he cared for them’. And it extends past the players: ‘His people skills around the place,’ said Fletcher. ‘He is doing this all around the club. Receptionists…they’re enjoying their job because the manager is taking time to speak to them.’
It’s clear Rodgers appointment has had the desired effect on Leicester City, but just how far can they go in the 2019/20 season? If you like football spread betting you’ll know they’re given virtually no chance of pulling off a repeat of 2015/16 – of course, the Premier League title is viewed as a two-horse race between Manchester City and Liverpool – but they are a genuine chance of finding themselves in the mix for a top four spot come the business end of the season. The likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham are more favoured, but the chance is there for the taking.
So, was it the right move for Rodgers to take the job with Leicester? He had it pretty good at Celtic – winning trophies for fun, great relationships, and seemingly nothing stopping all of that continuing for years to come. But he gave it all away for the challenge of coaching a mid-tier Premier League club, with the prospect of building them into a consistent Champions League contender. It’s far too early to say whether he will be successful in doing so, but the early signs are positive. He has already developed a culture and belief in the club which has quickly translated into on-field success, and if things continue in the direction they are heading for the Foxes, it will be hard to argue with his decision.
18.10.19 12mths
From all reports, the club is a happy place to be. Rodgers is renowned for his people skills and it appears he’s shown exactly why at Leicester. According to Darren Fletcher, ‘every player I’ve spoken to…said they loved working with him because he cared for them’. And it extends past the players: ‘His people skills around the place,’ said Fletcher. ‘He is doing this all around the club. Receptionists…they’re enjoying their job because the manager is taking time to speak to them.’
It’s clear Rodgers appointment has had the desired effect on Leicester City, but just how far can they go in the 2019/20 season? If you like football spread betting you’ll know they’re given virtually no chance of pulling off a repeat of 2015/16 – of course, the Premier League title is viewed as a two-horse race between Manchester City and Liverpool – but they are a genuine chance of finding themselves in the mix for a top four spot come the business end of the season. The likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham are more favoured, but the chance is there for the taking.
So, was it the right move for Rodgers to take the job with Leicester? He had it pretty good at Celtic – winning trophies for fun, great relationships, and seemingly nothing stopping all of that continuing for years to come. But he gave it all away for the challenge of coaching a mid-tier Premier League club, with the prospect of building them into a consistent Champions League contender. It’s far too early to say whether he will be successful in doing so, but the early signs are positive. He has already developed a culture and belief in the club which has quickly translated into on-field success, and if things continue in the direction they are heading for the Foxes, it will be hard to argue with his decision.
18.10.19 12mths
