Brendan Rodgers waxes lyrical over Bosun Lawal as Celtic boss singles out one other Hoops star against Ayr United

Brendan Rodgers has heaped praise on TWO Celtic stars including Bosun Lawal after the pre-season draw with Ayr United.

The Hoops boss kicked off his summer schedule with a clash against legendary Parkhead skipper Scott Brown and his Scottish Championship outfit as they unveiled the grand opening of their new North Stand at Somerset Park. The pair - who maintain a really strong bond - had just weeks ago met up in Mallorca for a catch up, but for 90 minutes on the touchline they were rivals.

It was a tale of two first half penalties with Kyogo Furuhashi getting off the mark after Odin Thiago Holm was fouled in the box. He confidently converted from 12-yards before Anton Dowds was handed the same opportunity after George Oakley was taken down. He expertly slotted past Scott Bain with no further goals on show. Rodgers shuffled his pack by making a raft of changes to ensure plenty of minutes got spread across the squad as they step up their new season preparations. A host of young guns also got the chance to catch the eye during the Friday night clash. Lawal - who spent last season out on loan at Fleetwood Town - had a superb season down south and he is one that Rodgers is a huge fan of. Dane Murray was another who earned a namecheck.

Speaking to Celtic TV, Rodgers said: "I really like Bosun. He is a player clearly that has got a lot of physical attributes. But what he has as well is a lot of football ability. Been out on loan and you can see he has had that experience and has that power and quality to break though. We seen that this evening. Really pleased for him.

"Great to see Dane Murray back. This is a young guy who I seen when he was first in the team at what 16, 17. Has had a horrendous time with injury but has come