Joe Hart gets major Celtic backing from Brendan Rodgers as boss tells him 'I don't need you to be Ederson'

The Celtic job might not be quite the breeze some thought Brendan Rodgers was walking back into after all.

There may be a pile of money burning holes in the pockets at Parkhead but there are also some key men on the treatment table and others already out the door. Jota has followed the Gulf Stream of money, Aaron Mooy has stuck the feet up and Cameron Carter-Vickers, Alistair Johnston, Mikey Johnston and Mario Tilio have varying chances of being able to play on the opening day of the season.

At the same time Rodgers is casting his eye over the squad he inherited and working out who he wants to form the first stage of his second coming at the club and the areas he needs to spend to keep the silverware coming in. The in-tray is rising, but the need for a new goalkeeper hasn’t worked its way to the top as the presence of Joe Hart has sent any glove interest to the bottom of the pile.

The manager has demolished any suggestions the current No.1 might not quite suit his system. In his first spell Craig Gordon was the main man but there was a sense Rodgers wanted a sweeper keeper to build from the back. That may be the case, but the Northern Irishman has no fears Hart can be that man for him – at least for now.

Rodgers said: “It’s for me to assess everything at the moment but I’ve always liked Joe. He’s 36 but he trains so hard every day and he’s a great influence around this changing room. That will be really important and you can never underestimate that. As a player he is undervalued in terms of what he can do with his feet.

“I don’t need him to be Ederson at Man City – I just need him to keep the ball out of the net. Then when the ball comes back to him I just need him to play simple. From what I have seen so far, and