Old faithfuls serve Brendan Rodgers well at Celtic

The Celtic manager put his faith in those left behind by predecessor Ronny Deila to get the job done in the early summer weeks to open the door to the advanced stages of the Champions League qualifiers.

This was a belief that was validated and rewarded in spades. Mikael Lustig, Patrick Roberts, Scott Brown and of course Leigh Griffiths are just some that found the back of the net as the Hoops progressed through the various phases, slowly creeping towards the pinnacle of European competition.

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As well as this confidence in the pool he inherited, Rodgers has leaned on those who have served him well in the past to help carve out a brighter future at Paradise.

Scott Sinclair has arrived and has already bagged six goals in his maiden season in green and white, including five in his first five league games. But more on him later.

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As well as the talented forward, Rodgers has reunited himself with a figure who perhaps has not quite set the heather alight in the same way as the former Aston Villa man.

In Dorus de Vries, the Celtic manager perhaps ruffled the feathers and raised an eyebrow of a few in his own support when the man he once had at Swansea City was thrust in between the sticks.

Replacing the favourite figure of Craig Gordon, De Vries was thrown in against Aberdeen before keeping his place in the starting XI in the showpiece matches against Rangers and the Barcelona.

However, there remains some question marks among some supporters that he is the right man to hold the No.1 jersey at Celtic, particularly after he seemed culpable for conceding from a long-range Billy King shot on Sunday in Inverness.

Regardless of that fact, Chris Davies, Rodgers's right-hand man, illustrated why that word 'trust' is applicable when assessing how the Dutch veteran will prosper over the coming weeks and months.

“Dorus was player of the season last year at Nottingham Forest and we’ve worked with him before and had success," said Davies, citing the 35-year-old's previous fine form. “He has come into a new team and a new environment and in the period he has been here there’s been good performances.

“Obviously as a team we never look back and say it’s someone’s fault - we are looking at taking shared responsibility for any shot that goes in on goal. It’s about us sticking together.

“We’ve got two goalkeepers fighting for one position and Craig’s attitude has been fantastic since he came out the team. He’s been training well and he’s been focused because he knows it’s about performing and having that competition within your squad.

“We are all in this together and we support each other.

“Dorus was player of the season last year at Nottingham Forest and we’ve worked with him before and had success.

“He has come into a new team and a new environment and in the period he has been here there’s been good performances.

“Obviously as a team we never look back and say it’s someone’s fault - we are looking at taking shared responsibility for any shot that goes in on goal. It’s about us sticking together.

“We’ve got two goalkeepers fighting for one position and Craig’s attitude has been fantastic since he came out the team. He’s been training well and he’s been focused because he knows it’s about performing and having that competition within your squad.

“We are all in this together and we support each other."

Going back to Sinclair, few could have expected that he would hit the ground running with such pace or force after bringing to a close a truly tumultuous period over two seasons at Villa Park.

His directness and sharpness was instrumental in the Old Firm game and in what was a dire night in the Camp Nou, provided the smallest hint of promise going forward against Barcelona.

A player that was a star for Rodgers at Swansea, Davies is delighted to see him performing to his capabilities once again under his old boss.

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“Scott’s flying, he’s been great," he said of the man who carved open Inverness on Sunday to restore Celtic's 2-1 lead before Caley's late leveller.

"I thought in the moments that we had the ball in the Nou Camp he showed up quite well, he set up the penalty and looked physically at the level in terms of his speed and power.

“Scott is someone I know very well, he’s done brilliant since he came here and he could definitely play in the Premier League still, 100 percent.

“But Scott is loving his football and he is someone that really values the life he’s got and really values playing at a club like Celtic. Just last week he said to me how he is enjoying every game and every moment for the first time in a while.

“He deserves his success and he deserves his goals record. He’s been goal, assist, goal, assist in the league - he’s a very important player for us and to score the goals that consistently from wide areas is not easy.

“He gives us speed and that is an area where we can hurt teams."