Inside Brendan Rodgers' Celtic talks with Dermot Desmond as boss sets out Champions League masterplan to seal return

Former Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has reportedly told Dermot Desmond he wants to make the Scottish champions a force in Europe.

Record Sport revealed on Tuesday that the former invincible boss has asked for time to mull over ‘the biggest decision of his life’ after being persuaded into considering a potential second spell in charge by billionaire owner Desmond. Rodgers invited a top level Celtic delegation to his holiday home in Majorca after holding two lengthy telephone conversations with the club’s major shareholder who wants to bankroll the 50-year-old’s controversial comeback.

Rodgers has reportedly put the Champions League at the top of his agenda with the Scottish Premiership champions guaranteed group stage football next term during those conversations with majority shareholder Desmond. The Daily Mail report that the former Leicester City boss has told the Celtic board that they must "invest in the players and infrastructure necessary to drive the club forward in Europe."

They state that the Northern Irishman was "frustrated by the glass ceiling on transfer spending" before he returned to the English Premier League. Rodgers wants to see the football operation "reshaped" at Celtic.

The Hoops could face late competition for a deal from Leeds United after the English Championship side launched an eleventh hour attempt to hijack his return to Celtic. He is top of the wishlist at Elland Road while Daniel Farke is also in the running.

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