Brendan Rodgers fears Celtic transfer headache if more Saudi bids arrive as 2 'dangerous' elements have boss on alert

Brendan Rodgers admits Celtic would find it tough to prevent other stars following Jota to Saudi Arabia - even if offers come in AFTER the transfer window closes.

The Parkhead boss lost the £25million Portuguese winger to the Middle East in the summer. Major stars like Karim Benzema and Jordan Henderson have joined the exodus and clubs across Europe fear disruption to their squads beyond the closing of their transfer period.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has urged FIFA to look into the fact Saudi’s transfer window closes almost three weeks later. Klopp, who saw Fabinho join Henderson in heading to the desert, is concerned major Euro leagues and teams will lose players without being able to replace them. Rodgers knows that could have ramifications across the game.

Asked if he was confident his own club would reject a Saudi bid for a key player after our transfer window closes, he said: “That is difficult to say. It is nothing to do with Celtic really. A club from Saudi could come in and offer a life-changing deal to a player.

“You can decide to keep the player but you might not have the same player. So there is all that type of thing you always have to weigh up. I think every manager would want it (the window) to finish whenever the first games start. But it doesn’t so we live with it and will have to deal with whatever comes our way.”

Cristiano Ronaldo set the ball rolling with his switch in the twilight of his career but Rodgers believes that Henderson’s signing was also a signal of intent. He continued: “In terms of profile, if you are taking the current Liverpool captain to Saudi Arabia I would say it’s a big deal.”

Rodgers himself was approached to manage in Saudi after he left Leicester. It was only Celtic who