Brendan Rodgers quits Celtic in bombshell exit as club legend returns to dugout

Celtic have announced that Brendan Rodgers has left his role as manager, with the club accepting his resignation. The former Liverpool boss had been under growing pressure with the Glasgow giants making a disappointing start to the campaign. They are currently eight points adrift of Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts, having failed to win four of their opening nine matches.

Rodgers' last match in charge of Celtic saw them lose to their Edinburgh rivals in an early title clash on Sunday. He has been temporarily replaced in the dugout by two club legends, with Martin O'Neill returning to Parkhead on an interim basis. He will be joined by Shaun Maloney, who made over 150 appearances for Celtic as a player across two spells.

An official statement read: "Celtic Football Club can confirm that football manager Brendan Rodgers has today tendered his resignation. It has been accepted by the club and Brendan will leave his role with immediate effect.

"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 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.

"We are pleased that during this interim period former Celtic manager, Martin O'Neill and former Celtic player, Shaun Maloney have agreed to take charge of Celtic first-team matters. Further details will be confirmed shortly."

Rodgers' exit comes after a turbulent start to the campaign, with fans launching regular protests against the club's hierarchy. Their recent match against Dundee had to be stopped when supporters threw hundreds of tennis balls and oranges onto the pitch.

There were also frustrations after a summer of limited spending, with those concerns amplified by Celtic's failure to qualify for the league phase of the Champions League.

They were beaten in a two-legged playoff by Kazakh champions Kairat, with both matches ending in goalless draws before the Scottish giants lost on penalties.

Following the defeat to Hearts over the weekend, Rodgers raised eyebrows in what turned out to be his final interview as Celtic manager by questioning their opponents' style of play.

"Celtic as a club, the DNA is about playing football and we'll never lose that," he told Sky Sports. "When we play to that identity... Hearts, you can see, it's totally different, it's a different DNA here.

"The ball's direct, the supporters love that, it's a second ball fight, it's set pieces, all that. Celtic hasn't become winners in that way. Our DNA is to play a fast, attacking game of football."