Brendan Rodgers regards League Cup as the most important trophy of his Celtic career

The Hoops take on Dundee at Dens Park in the quarter-final of the tournament tomorrow night as they look to retain the Cup they won at Hampden last November.

That 3-0 triumph over Aberdeen gave Rodgers his first piece of silverware as Celtic manager - and the first of his managerial career.

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Celtic claimed the trophy without losing a goal and it was the importance of affirming his methods to the Hoops players that Rodgers regards it is pivotal to the unbeaten domestic Treble which followed.

“I felt it was very important for us because of how we were working and how we started,” he said. “It was having something to show so for me it will always be the most important trophy in my time here purely because it was my first one but it was also the one which gave the players real belief in how we were working on a daily basis and how they were being coached. I see it as a very important trophy.

“That was the first real game where I felt that the players were starting to cope with what I was asking of them. It was a pressure game. We had got through the other games and had some great results up until that point but could we then in a final show that composure and the way they played was outstanding. It was a really good win for us.”

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Dedryck Boyata will make his return for Celtic tomorrow night at Dens Park with the defender also in the cusp of earning a new deal with the club.

The 26-year-old has been missing since sustaining a knee ligament injury during pre-season in July but should feature against Dundee.

The player is contracted until 2019 with Celtic but a new contract is imminent.

“He’s certainly one I’ll be looking to keep so that’s something we’ll be looking at,” said Rodgers. “I always like to have a centre half with real speed.

“He’s been back working hard in training for a few weeks, the next step for him is to get game time.

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“It’s about managing it. Whether he can come in and play the next four on the spin, I’m not sure that will be the case.

“But he’s certainly ready to be introduced.

“It’s a relief for everyone, people can stop writing about needing centre halves! We can move on to something else.

“It’s nice to have him back. Since the turn of the year and the trip to Dubai he has been brilliant with me. The bit of sun did him the world of good.

“He was great that week in training and was outstanding the rest of the season.

“It’s a big year for him with Belgium and the World Cup coming up. We want to build him up and help him be involved in that.”