Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has ruled himself out of the running to be next Aston Villa manager after the 45-year-old was named on a three-man shortlist to replace the sacked Steve Bruce. Villa’s chief executive Christian Purslow wants to interview Rodgers, Thierry Henry and Rui Faria for the vacancy manager role, but Rodgers played down any chance of him moving.
When asked if he was aware of Villa’s interest, the Hoops boss told BBC Scotland: “No. Not at all. There’s always speculation around lots of names, and what I know is from my time in England (that) Aston Villa’s a huge club. But for me, I’m so happy here at Celtic. I wish Aston Villa well. Was sad to see Steve Bruce go, I think he’s an excellent manager and I’m sure they’ll have the person in mind to bring in. For me, I’m the Celtic manager. I love it here.”
And when asked if he would rule yourself out of the job, Rodgers said: “Yeah”. The Northern Ireland coach joined Celtic in May 2016 and has gone on to win two Scottish Premiership titles, two Scottish Cups and two Scottish League Cups in two years. His Celtic side are currently third in the Premiership with 16 points from eight games this season, coming off the back of consecutive league victories.
Aston Villa recently parted company with Bruce after drawing 3-3 with Preston North End. The Midlands outfit have since lost to Millwall and find themselves 15th in the Championship with 15 points from 12 games, having gone four games without a win. Villa are only four points adrift of the playoffs place but are nine points off an automatic promotion spot.
Stats from Transfermarkt.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
