IN between one regime ending and another beginning, John Kennedy was caught in no-man’s land.

When Ronny Deila announced that in the aftermath of the defeat to Rangers in the semi-final of the William Hill Scottish Cup that he would be stepping down at the end of the season, it left Kennedy in limbo.

The hierarchy at the club informed the Celtic coach that a decision would be made when the new manager arrived and so Kennedy was left to play the waiting game.

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“A manager could have brought his own people in and I could have moved on,” he explained.

“But Brendan – a big name in the game – came in and I spoke to him just after he was appointed and we spoke about his views and he then asked me to be part of his coaching team.”Glasgow Times: Celtic first team coach John Kennedy.

Within that first week of Rodgers arriving, the former Liverpool manager had invited Kennedy over for an informal chat, although from Kennedy’s perspective it may well have felt like he was walking into an interview.

Instead, though, he was put at ease by Rodgers and he anticipates establishing a successful working relationship with the new Hoops boss.

"I didn't speak to him the day he was in but we spoke on the phone a couple of days afterwards,” said Kennedy.

"I met up with him about six days after his unveiling. We met for a few hours and had a great chat. He's good company, he's a good people person and he's good to talk to. He's intelligent too.

"I suppose you could say it was like a job interview but he's a very calming person. He's down to your level. He's not got an ego or sits there like the boss man. He's very likeable and everyone has taken to him.

“It was a very social chat when we met. It wasn’t formal. He just asked for my opinion on players and Scottish football.

“He also gave me his vision on how he sees things moving forward and how he wants the team to play.”

Kennedy was a vocal presence on the touchline last season as he worked with Deila and John Collins and he doesn’t expect to be intimidated with a new management team in the dugout.

Rodgers has brought in Glen Driscoll as his assistant as well as Chris Davies and Kennedy expects to be as opinionated as he has been since stepping into the role.Glasgow Times: 02/06/16
LENNOXTOWN
Celtic Manager Brendan Rodgers

"That's just the way I am,” he said. “If I was a manager I'd want the opinions of my coaching staff. As an assistant you want to give him information so he can make his decisions.

“It's part of my job to give my opinion and he's very open to that. He wants you to give him solutions but at the end of the day he makes the decisions. That's what he gets paid for.”

While Kennedy was keen to point out that the current squad ought to be better prepared for their assault on the qualifiers this season after their experiences last term, he too goes into the games better equipped.

When Celtic lost out on a ticket to the group stages after their defeat to Malmo last term, it was Kennedy who held up his hands and took the blame, insisting that his belief in sticking with a zonal marking system would be sufficient to get Celtic through the tie.

Instead, three goals were lost – all from set-pieces – something that Rodgers clocked immediately.

“After the game I was part of the organisation of it and that’s what cost us so I moved on,” he said.

“I want to be successful. I’m part of a team and there was a lot of people taking stick and I put my hands up as part of the team.Glasgow Times: Davie Hay believes John Kennedy still has a role to play at Celtic

“If you asked a player he would also say he was involved in part of it so maybe things were taken out of context with me – but as a team we have to know our jobs and be fully prepared.

“The second season and the Malmo game told me small details cost us at vital moments in the game.

“We could have taken advantage of certain situations and then we slipped up with errors.

“The focus on concentration needs to be spot on – all countries are getting stronger and the smaller nations are more tactically disciplined so going into any game we have to be 100% on the money.

“We have to deliver. Experience teaches you a lot.”

And Kennedy has already revealed the minute attention to detail on the training round that has set Rodgers apart before a ball has been kicked.

“His preparation is second to none in terms of the detail,” explained Kennedy.

“Even for a meeting or a training session, he’s taken things up a notch – to the minute detail.

“The colours of the cones and the poles have to be the same and the pitch has to look a certain way when we go out.

“Even down to session plans, there are red and green pens for different teams.

“But these are all standards and players will say, ‘I like this’. We are a top club and we need to have top standards.

“That’s the way he works and it’s great for everybody. First impressions are good.”