Brendan Rodgers: 'Jurgen Klopp treated differently to me'

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 25 March 2018

Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers claims that the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool would face more accusations of being a one-man team if their managers were British.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has claimed that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp would face more questions over his managerial ability if he were British.

Rodgers was in charge of the Reds during their most recent title challenge in 2013-14, falling just short in a campaign which saw Luis Suarez score 31 goals.

However, the Northern Irishman has rejected suggestions that his side were a one-man team, and believes that being British brings with it more criticism when a team is performing well.

"People said, 'Well, he had Luis Suarez'. I thought that was very discourteous, mainly to the rest of the players, because we had created a team and we had one team and it had one brain," Rodgers told the Daily Mail.

"Luis was the focal point of it but he will tell you himself that he couldn't have done that without the adjustments of the others.

"If you equate what was said about me with what might be said about a foreign coach, then as an example Mauricio Pochettino has done a great job at Tottenham but they probably wouldn't say, 'It's down to Harry Kane'. And it is the same with Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool with the contribution of Mo Salah. But for a British coach, there always has to be a catch."

Suarez's 31-goal season has already been eclipsed by Salah this term, with the Egyptian having found the back of the net 36 times since his summer move from Roma.