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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Aidan Smith

John Kennedy on staying at Celtic and why he opted against Tottenham with Postecoglou

John Kennedy has opened up on his decision to stay at Celtic instead of opting to join Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham Hotspur.

Kennedy had the chance to move down south to the Premier League with the Aussie, but instead, he opted to stay in Glasgow with new boss Brendan Rodgers.

The pair worked alongside each other during Rodgers' first stint as manager at Celtic and the strong relationship then helped Kennedy make his mind up this time around.

He told Sky Sports: "When I was first team coach under him [Rodgers], we had a very fluid relationship. In his time away, we always kept in touch, meeting for dinner and having discussions. It's good to have him back and I have a good relationship with him, hopefully that bodes well.

"The summer was interesting. Obviously Ange decided to move on to Spurs. I've been there a few times when managers have changed, there's the uncertainty. You never know what's around the corner or if the club are in discussions with other people.

"I was in close contact with Ange and there were different possibilities, but Brendan was coming back to Celtic, the club and Brendan wanted me to stay and be part of this going forward. Being part of this club is a great privilege. I know what it's all about here, you know, and I've got a good understanding of it and I know the players and Brendan really well and that was a big pull in terms of sticking around and being part of that. I know Brendan works, the level of his work, so, it's great to still be here.

"There was possibilities, you can never look back on it and say that would never have happened, the way things worked it, it wasn't to be. The club got Brendan back in quickly and to get someone of his calibre was good by the club."

On Postecoglou, Kennedy added: "I learned a lot from him. He has a different style to Brendan and he's very successful in the way he does that and he's a very humble guy I've kept in touch with spoke through pre-season, see how things are going at both ends.

"I'm pretty sure he'll do a fantastic job down there because he's a terrific manager, he knows what he wants. I'm pretty sure the Spurs fans and the club will learn very quickly how he likes to operate and they'll see a different team down there."

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