Next Celtic manager odds: Ex-Leeds United striker among early frontrunners after Brendan Rodgers resigns
Several names including a former Leeds United Premier League player have been tipped for the Parkhead job.
Former Leeds United striker Robbie Keane is among the early favourites to take charge of Celtic following Brendan Rodgers’ sensational resignation.
Rodgers’ decision to leave Parkhead was confirmed on Monday evening, with Celtic eight points adrift of Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts following a 3-1 defeat against their title rivals on Sunday. A statement from the Scottish giants read: “The Club appreciates Brendan’s contribution to Celtic during his two very successful periods at the Club.
“Brendan leaves Celtic with our thanks for the role he has played during a period of continued success for the Club and we wish him further success in the future. The process to appoint a new permanent manager is underway and the Club will update supporters further on this as soon as possible.”
In a sensational twist, key shareholder Dermot Desmond then released his own statement, labelling Rodgers ‘self-serving’ and claiming the outgoing manager contributed to a ‘toxic atmosphere’ at Parkhead. Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney have been appointed on an interim basis as club chiefs search for a more permanent option.
As expected, a number of high profile names have already been linked with the vacant job and among them is former Leeds striker Keane, who according to Bet365 sits at 14/1. The 45-year-old is currently in charge of Hungarian outfit Ferencvaros who he joined in January, having previously managed Indian outfit ATK and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel.
Keane is currently sixth favourite to take the vacant Celtic job, with Ange Postecoglou the early frontrunner at 6/4. The Australian left Parkhead in 2023 and won the Europa League trophy with Tottenham Hotspur, but he was sacked the following summer and more recently lasted just 39 days in charge of Nottingham Forest.
Kieran McKenna is priced at 4/1 to succeed Rodgers, having guided Ipswich Town to Championship promotion in 2022/23 before being relegated the following campaign. The Tractor Boys currently sit 12th in the Championship with four wins and 16 points from 11 games.
Interim appointments O’Neill and Maloney are also priced ahead of Keane, at 7/1 and 8/1 respectively, while Kjetil Knutsen is also priced at 8/1. The latter has impressed in Norway by guiding Bodo/Glimt to the Champions League.
Robbie Keane’s unsuccessful Leeds United return
Alongside his spells as the main man in India, Israel and now Hungary, Keane returned to Elland Road in a coaching capacity during Leeds’ previous Premier League spell. The former Republic of Ireland international arrived back in West Yorkshire as part of Sam Allardyce's backroom staff after the experienced manager was appointed to oversee the Whites’ final four games.
That appointment did not work, however, with Leeds taking just one point from those final four games and eventually finishing 19th. Keane and Allardyce swiftly left but the former kept a keen eye on Daniel Farke’s fortunes and was happy to see the Championship title won in May.
"They’re a great club with a great fanbase, and you could see that in the atmosphere at the end of the season,” he said at the time. "I hope Leeds will back the manager next season and it’s not going to be the case where three teams go up just to get relegated.
"Hopefully they’ve give the backing to the manager to sign some players that can keep them steady in the top flight for a couple of years, and then hopefully kick on from there. They’re definitely a club that deserves to be in the Premier League.”