“He gave us his number”; class Rodgers gesture has stuck with upcoming Celtic opponent

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Stuart Kettlewell is likely to look up to someone like Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers.

The Motherwell boss is making waves in Lanarkshire, after revitalising the Fir Park side since his appointment in February. Kettlewell has taken them from the depths of despair to a seventh-placed finish last year. This season he has his side up in fourth.

The 39-year-old is likely to move up further in the game if he keeps up the good job he’s doing. He has earned plenty of praise in recent times and has a nice bit of experience now after a near three-year spell at Ross County.

Back in the early days of that job, he came into contact with Rodgers, after a 3-0 loss at Celtic Park. It’s an experience that clearly meant a lot to him, as he opened up on it ahead of his latest meeting with the Celtic boss on Saturday.

“Credit to Brendan, myself and Stevie Ferguson were co-managers and the time he gave us sitting in his office after the game was brilliant,” he told the Daily Record. “Not just talking about general gossip within Scottish football but we got to talk about specifics of the game. He was terrific, absolutely brilliant.

“He gave us his number after it and said if there was anything either of us wanted to pick his brain about to give him a call. With his pathway in the development side of the game at Chelsea, Watford, Reading then all the clubs he’s been at, he was trying to help a couple of guys who were trying to find a similar pathway.

“I can do nothing but sing his praises about how he’s been with me when I’ve managed against his teams. But it was in that 45-minute chat at our first meeting that I saw a man who was fully transparent and trying to offer a bit of support to younger guys who were trying to come through in management. In my personal experience, he’s a class act.

“Nobody should underestimate what he achieved in his first spell in Scotland. That level of consistency was remarkable.”

Rodgers is well known to be keen to help up-and-coming managers. He regularly had aspiring coaches across to Lennoxtown in his first spell at the club, and is likely to be doing the same this time around.

Jack Ross was one such manager who commented on his Celtic training ground visits. The majority of these kind of things wouldn’t have reached the public domain.

For Rodgers to spend 45 minutes chatting with Kettlewell and Ferguson after a match, amid all of his media commitments, is a very impressive thing.

Guys like Kettlewell must savour the time and the ability to pick the brains of a guy who has managed major clubs like Liverpool and Celtic.

The Motherwell boss is at a more advanced stage of his career now. His team will pose a real threat to us tomorrow, and Rodgers wouldn’t have it any other way. There is likely to be a warm embrace between the two.

In other news, Nat Phillips set to save Brendan Rodgers a major Celtic headache