Brendan Rodgers has been confirmed as the head coach of the Saudi Arabian side Al-Qadsiah. Rodgers resigned from Celtic in October, a move thattriggered a stinging attack from the club’s main shareholder Dermot Desmond. The 52-year-old is yet to address Desmond’s sentiment but is known to have been attractive to Saudi clubs for some time. He turned down a move to the kingdom after leaving Leicester in 2023.
Al-Qadsiah, who sacked their Spanish manager Michel at the weekend, have stolen a march on their domestic rivals by moving for Rodgers, who has been keen for a swift return to the dugout. The club are owned by Aramco, the state-owned Saudi oil company.
James Bisgrove, Al-Qadsiah’s chief executive officer, said: “This is a landmark moment for the club. The calibre of his experience and track record of winning reflects our ambition and long-term vision to establish Al-Qadsiah as one of Asia’s leading clubs.”
Al-Qadsiah are fifth in the Saudi Pro League after nine matches, 10 points behind the leaders, Al-Nassr.
Rodgers won back-to-back Scottish titles during a second spell at Celtic, with matters subsequently turning sour due to troubles in the transfer market.
The former Liverpool manager’s permanent replacement at Celtic, Wilfried Nancy, has lost his first three matches in office. Nancy’s struggles have fuelled the theory that Celtic should have retained Martin O’Neill, who took caretaker charge after Rodgers left, for a longer period.
O’Neill said on Monday he would have remained in charge had Celtic wanted him to stay. “If they had asked me to stay on, I would’ve done so, but the minute that they said, ‘No, that’s your time’, that was fine by me,” he told Talksport.
O’Neill called for Nancy to be shown patience. The Frenchman has endured a grim losing run, the most recent being Sunday’s League Cup final against St Mirren, and that has led to doubts about his suitability to the role.
“You’ve got to give managers chances,” O’Neill said. “I think back to my own time at Leicester City, where I eventually enjoyed nice success. Can’t win a game to save my life, crowd baying for blood and after 10 games. How lucky I was to win a couple of matches of real importance at a stage.
“There’s some excellent players at the club. There’s some boys who have won big time as well. Lean on some of the senior players. Lean on them and get them on your side.
“It is recoverable, of course. You’re in the football club 10 or 12 days.”
