'Change is needed' - Celtic Champions League rivals sack manager as Rodgers' men receive welcome boost

A general stadium view before a UEFA Champions League match between Celtic and SK Slovan BratislavaA general stadium view before a UEFA Champions League match between Celtic and SK Slovan Bratislava
A general stadium view before a UEFA Champions League match between Celtic and SK Slovan Bratislava | SNS Group
One of the Celtic’s upcoming European foes have decided to wield the axe ahead of their visit to Parkhead

Celtic have been handed a welcome boost after another one of their upcoming Champions League opponents have decided to sack their manager after just FIVE months in charge.

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Brendan Rodgers’ side began the new-look league phase format with a thumping 5-1 win over Slovan Bratislava at Parkhead but the Hoops were brought crashing back down to earth on matchday two against Borussia Dortmund, suffering a 7-1 hammering in Germany last week.

Those are just two of the eight different clubs the Scottish champions will face during their Euro campaign and two of their rivals have parted company with their manager so far this season.

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One of those teams, Dinamo Zagreb - who travel to Celtic Park on December 10th - dismissed Sergei Jankovic last month following the 9-2 humiliation away at Bayern Munich in their Champions League opener. That was despite leading the Croatian outfit to a league and cup double last term. Nenad Bjelica has returned for a second spell in charge following a short spell at the helm of Union Berlin.

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Now it’s the turn of Swiss champions Young Boys with the axe falling on Patrick Rahmen ahead of their visit to Glasgow’s east end on January 22. The experienced former Switzerland under-21 boss only joined the club in May but oversaw a dismal start to their title defence, with Young Boys sitting bottom of the Super League having won just once of their opening nine matches.

Despite beating Turkish heavyweights Galatasaray to qualifying for the Champions League, Young Boys lost to Aston Villa on matchday one and were thrashed 5-0 by Barcelona, which has led club officials to make a change.

Under-21 boss Joel Magnin has been placed in interim charge for a second time. On the decision to sack Rahmen, sporting director Christoph Spycher said: “After extensive discussions and analyses, we came to the conclusion that a change is needed. Our situation as bottom of the table after nine rounds is extremely disappointing.

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“It's about getting back on track. It's bitter that things didn't work out with Patrick Rahmen. At the same time, we are grateful to Joel Magnin for putting himself fully at the service of BSC Young Boys and once again clearly expressing his loyalty to the club.

“We are convinced that with him we will succeed in giving the team more self-confidence and stability. In our situation, we don't need to talk about winning the championship, but about finding our way out of the slump step by step. That alone is a very big challenge.”

Celtic head to Italy next to face Serie A outfit Atalanta later this month before back-to-back home clashes against RB Leipzig and Club Brugge in November. The Hoops then travel to face Dinamo Zagreb in December before rounding off their league phase with a home tie game against Young Boys and a trip to the Midlands to take on Aston Villa the following week.

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