Celtic treble-winning hero claims Brendan Rodgers second spell 'wasn't the same' - but tips Hoops for title
Former Celtic forward Scott Sinclair has spoken out about the Hoops and former boss Brendan Rodgers
Celtic are embroiled in a tense Scottish Premiership title race, but the Hoops will still go on to win the title this year according to former player Scott Sinclair.
The Bhoys narrowed the gap on leaders Hearts to just two points last weekend and will look to keep up their challenge on Sunday away at Dundee United, while third place Rangers host Aberdeen and Hearts play Dundee.
Sinclair was speaking to OLBG and reflected on his time at Celtic, playing under Brendan Rodgers and why the Northern Irishman’s second spell as manager was not quite the same as his first. Rodgers resigned from the Glasgow giants in October and after the brief tenure of Wilfried Nancy, Martin O’Neill returned for his second temporary spell of the campaign to relaunch the Hoops’ title challenge.
Former Manchester City and Aston Villa winger Sinclair spent three seasons at Celtic and won the league title in each of his campaigns at the club, winning eight major trophies overall in a highly successful spell during Rodgers’ first reign as manager.
Sinclair claims Rodgers’ second spell at Parkhead was not the same
Sinclair said on Rodgers’ second spell – which still resulted in two league titles and four trophies overall, but ended on a sour note in the autumn: “That’s just football. Even managers, once you leave Celtic, you want to go back, and it’s exactly the same for the players. He went back there and, obviously, he’s moved on again because he wanted a change. I don’t think it felt the same as his first time.
“Sometimes when you go back to a club, you expect to have the same results and the same winning mentality, but obviously with different players. I think a lot changed since when I was there.”
He recalled on signing for the Hoops: “For me, the main thing was to go and enjoy my football. As soon as Celtic came in, it was a straight yes. I was leaving Aston Villa at the same time and I thought I was due a change. I went up there and it worked out even better than I could have imagined. It’s probably one of the best experiences, the best place and the happiest place I’ve been in when I was at Celtic. We did extraordinary things, and obviously winning the treble treble just makes it even better.
“The Premier League is passionate, but when I did go up there, it is even more passionate. Everywhere you go, they live and breathe football. When you’re playing in front of 60,000 at Celtic, it’s unbelievable. When you first go up there, you don’t really know how big it actually is until you’re in the games and you’re playing the Old Firm games. They are the main games to play in. I think anyone who leaves Celtic always wants to go back.
“We had such a quality team. For me, the goal was to go up there and win silverware, to get trophies. In the first year, we did the invincible treble. That’s just something spectacular that we did as a team. And to go and replicate that, winning three trophies for the three years I was there, it worked out much better than I could have even imagined.”
Sinclair tips Celtic for fifth straight league title
Sinclair added on Celtic’s Scottish Premiership title chances this term: “Celtic will win the league. They are currently two points behind after a slow start, being 11 or 12 points behind at one point mid-season. I believe they have enough quality and will take it right down to the last two games. They just have a little bit more quality than the other teams.
“The title race is entertaining. When I was there last, we dominated for years and even won the league in March or April. The fact that the Old Firm played a few weeks ago and the race is so close makes it more exciting.
“It will go down to the last couple of games. One concern is Kasper Schmeichel’s injury. He’s a quality player with a lot of experience, they will need to find someone of a similar stature to replace him. Big miss, but I think they’ll still have enough.”
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