Brendan Rodgers has stepped down as Celtic manager following a disappointing start to the season, the club confirmed on Monday.
The Scottish Premiership champions announced that former manager Martin O’Neill and ex-player Shaun Maloney will take charge of first-team duties until a permanent replacement is appointed.
Rodgers’ resignation came just a day after Celtic’s 3-1 defeat to Hearts, which left them eight points behind the Edinburgh club in the league standings. “Football manager Brendan Rodgers has today tendered his resignation” and “will leave his role with immediate effect,” Celtic said in a statement. “Brendan leaves with our thanks for the role he has played during a period of continued success for the club and we wish him further success in the future.”
The club confirmed that the process of finding a new manager had already begun. “We are pleased that during this interim period former Celtic manager, Martin O’Neill and former Celtic player, Shaun Maloney have agreed to take charge of Celtic first-team matters,” the statement added.
Rodgers, 52, began his second tenure at Celtic Park in June 2023, having previously led the club between May 2016 and February 2019. His first stint was highly successful—he guided Celtic to consecutive domestic trebles and achieved an unbeaten league campaign with a record 106 points in his debut season. He also managed Swansea, Liverpool, and Leicester before returning to Glasgow to replace Ange Postecoglou.
During his second spell, Rodgers maintained domestic dominance, winning league titles in the 2023–24 and 2024–25 seasons, along with both the Scottish Cup and Scottish League Cup. However, this season brought a series of setbacks. Celtic’s early exit from the Champions League at the hands of Kazakhstan’s Kairat Almaty and several poor domestic performances led to growing tension.
Frustrations boiled over after a shock loss to Dundee — Celtic’s first defeat there in 37 years. Rodgers criticized the club’s summer transfer policy, saying the squad had “lost a lot of firepower, a lot of goals.” He added, “And there’s no way you’ll go into a race and be given the keys to a Honda Civic and say, ‘I want you to drive it like a Ferrari.’ It’s not going to happen.”
His comments sparked a sharp response from the club’s principal shareholder, Dermot Desmond, who said Rodgers’ outburst came “entirely out of the blue.” Desmond countered that the manager had never raised such issues with him or other executives. “In reality, he was given final say over all football matters and was consistently backed in the recruitment process — including record investment in players he personally identified and approved,” Desmond stated.
Rodgers’ departure marks the end of a turbulent yet trophy-laden era for the Northern Irishman, whose achievements have left an enduring mark on Celtic’s modern history.
What You Should Know
Brendan Rodgers, 52, resigned as Celtic manager after a disappointing start to the new season, marked by a damaging defeat to Hearts and an early Champions League exit.
His second spell at Celtic brought domestic titles and cup victories, but growing tensions over the club’s transfer strategy strained relations with the board. Rodgers’ public criticism of the team’s lack of firepower led to a sharp rebuttal from owner Dermot Desmond.
Former boss Martin O’Neill and ex-player Shaun Maloney will manage the team temporarily as Celtic search for a permanent replacement.
