Rodgers won't block skipper Brown from moving to Oz

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has insisted that he will not stand in the way of captain Scott Brown moving to Australia next season, should he want to accept an offer from A-League newcomers Western Melbourne.

Rodgers has said that he will give his player "all the time he needs" to consider his options; the player has also been in talks with Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell about a new deal with the Scottish champions, but manager Rodgers has conceded that Brown is now at a point in his career that he may decide to have a change of scenery for his final years as a professional in the game. 

Club captain Brown, 33, is still an integral part of Rodger's plans at Parkhead, but is thought to be tempted by the opportunity to move to Australia as the face of the new A-League franchise in Melbourne. 

Manager Rodgers has this week, ahead of the club's clash with Hibernian, spoken to the media and insisted that he would not feel aggrieved if the player wants to move on, saying: "I'm not surprised if there are people in for Scott. He's shown such incredible loyalty to Celtic - but he has got the football rewards from it as well. After ten years, he's been great for the club."

 

October 20, 2018

Rodgers continued: "But he's getting towards the cycle of life for a footballer where he may want to look at other things. Scott loves it at Celtic and loves being here, but players can get offered a financial reward late in their career for two or three years."

However the Celtic manager left the door open for Brown to return to the club in the future, explaining: "There is no doubt that Scott - whether he stays here or goes - will be back one day as a coach or manager. But the great thing is that people are looking at him again in that sort of way. He's at the top of his game, he's in a great moment in his footballing life."

Meanwhile Western Melbourne franchise' director of football, Steve Horvat, was coy when questioned about the arrival of Brown, but did concede that the club have aspirations for " signing high-profile marquee players". 

Yet the club's move for Brown is not straightforward; their entire existence hinges on the acceptance of Football Federation Australia accepting their A-League application, which is being rivalled by five other prospective clubs.