Kyogo and Celtic burnout, signing Jota and winning with purpose and meaning - Ange Postecoglou Q+A

The Aussie covered a wide range of subjects ranging from signing Portuguese wide man Jota in January and where he feels that the club could capitalise on untapped markets.

Ange also spoke about visiting Hampden for the first time as the Celtic boss and the possibility of reaching his first domestic cup final as the men from Glasgow's East End face St Johnstone for a place in the League Cup final on Saturday evening.

The 56-year-old also gave a unique insight into his own philosophy on football and life whereby he revealed that everything he does has to have meaning.

Anthony Haggerty analyses Ange's key points from the presser.

On the second phase of the project at Celtic

"I go into every new opportunity with a vision for the long term but I totally understand the short term objectives at a club like this.

I was reticent to talk too much about the medium and long term objectives of the club because I didn't want people to think we were dismissing what was before us as the early part of the season is important for Celtic both in Europe and domestically.

"I always speak about the present as that is where a lot of my focus is. I have been assessing the organisation in terms of staff and infrastructure and we brought Anton McElhone and he has been a fantastic addition and before that, I was very comfortable with the staff we had here and their ability to work in the manner and set the environment and execute the plans that I want. That meant I could look beyond and see the gaps we have. Going into January we have still got work to do with the playing roster and depth in certain areas. In terms of the structure around here, we need to work around our recruiting and scouting department. That will be the next focus for me and to make sure that we get the right people in those areas."

Ange is completely upfront here and re-iterates that he trusts his backroom staff and is completely satisfied with the work they are doing. He has come halfway across the world alone and at no time has he called for an assistant. The fact that the Aussie is now looking to add to the scouting department shows that he is assessing every part of the football club or organisation - as he likes to call it. Fans will be delighted that it shows Ange is very much hands-on and will have his say on staffing in every department.

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On signing Jota in January

"I think we all those kind of issues people get really excited. I tend to let those things happen naturally. For me what's important when I signed Jota who is a good example, I wasn't signing someone I thought had talent, I wanted to also sign a player who really wanted to come to this football club - that was really important for me. I think this football club gives you a unique stage if you are an ambitious footballer. You get to play in a fantastic atmosphere in front of big crowds and in Europe and you are constantly challenged every week to be successful because this football club demands it. It is not simply about signing players who can fit the style but also about bringing in players who want to be here. That extends to whether we keep people here and the situation with Jota or anyone else is that if both parties want this to continue then we will make it continue.

"I am not going to be jumping at situations for any reason other than what is best for this football club. Jota is enjoying his football here and he is loving the club and his teammates and the way we play in front of our supporters. If that continues and he wants to stay at this football club then I am sure we will start those negotiations and come to an agreement. That's not going to satisfy everyone but people think you should just sign players whenever they show some potential. For me what is important is that we have football players who appreciate what they have here and Jota is certainly doing that at the moment. I can't give you timelines but if it continues as it is then I am sure he will be part of this football club beyond this season."

Ange is once again stating that Celtic is in pole position to land the one-time Benfica prized asset. The manager is focused solely on making sure that Jota continues to keep hitting the consistency levels and scaling the heights that he has already shown. Ange does not have a crystal ball and therefore does not know if the Portuguese wide man will attract further interest come May. He is confident that if the player remains happy and is successful that his love for the club, teammates and his environment might be enough to sway him to extend his stay in Paradise once the loan deal is completed.

On finding meaning inside and outside of football

"It's central to what I do, to be honest. I don't keep it a secret as I talk about it to the players every day, to be honest. As much as people talk about the tangible things in life and in particular sport and football. You come to a club like Celtic and everybody makes you aware that you are expected to win every week and expected to have success. People talk about that incessantly not just at this football club but in sport in general. My view on that is that you have got to find meaning beyond winning.

"Winning cannot be the end game because everybody wants to win but for me what's more important is how do you want to attain that? How do you want to attain that victory/success with what kind of football, with what kind of behaviour, with what kind of team and people do you want to be and how do you want to represent yourself? That is much more important. When you nail that and that is what I have tried to do in my career. If you do that then you are more than likely to create something special because people are driven by more than just getting three points and a victory in a game of football. If you are meeting an opponent that is just as determined and driven to get those three points then often what wins is the fact that something greater is driving them other than the three points.

"For me, it has always been about in a football context - the football we play and I just don't want to win. I want to win playing a certain way. I drive my players and my staff to do that every day. There will be games that we win but we will be disappointed because we didn't play the football we want. Other days we will not win but we will have played the kind of football we want and that deepens our understanding and we will know we are on the right road. That's where it becomes really important for me. I have said to the players if you can find meaning in the way you live your life because if the motivation is just to make money and have fame and do those things and there is not a person on earth who does not want to do those things and if there is some meaning behind what you do then those kinds of things come to you anyway. I have felt comfortable from day one about coming into Celtic as it fits into my own ethos and culture really. I understood the football club I was walking into. I know the kind of person that this football wants to be here as it is closely aligned to my own beliefs, values and upbringing. It resonates more when it is natural rather than trying to persuade people that I believe in this."

This is Ange's philosophy in football and in life and he even spells it out in the pages of his book. It is a wonderful insight into what makes the Aussie tick for a start. Winning is simply not enough and Ange wants to entertain and play football in a style that encapsulates the Celtic Way. Whilst they may never reach the "pure, beautiful, inventive football" of Jock Stein's Lisbon Lions team of 1967, Ange realises that there is a template for the way Celtic teams in the past have gone about their business on the park and in their daily lives off it. He certainly won't shy away from trying to reach those exemplary standards set by those who made history before him. Ange is already grasping what it is to not only be the manager for Celtic but an ambassador for the club with a fanbase that reaches worldwide.

On Kyogo suffering from burnout

"People haven't taken too kindly to me resting Kyogo so far. I guess it is not the most popular way forward. I understand that there is this sort of urgency to do certain things. I am a pretty methodical kind of guy. There is science behind everything we try and do. I listen to the guys who are working in the medical teams and the sports science department. There are times that we need to be mindful that the guys are not robots and if we want them to perform at the highest possible levels then we will need to make sure we look after them from a physical and psychological perspective.

"Kyogo is still the second top goalscorer in Japan as he played a lot of games. He has played international games and carried an injury. You wouldn't know it talking to him as he wants to play and train all the time and he is constantly smiling. We have got to look beyond that because he is not here for three or four months as we want him here for a long time and establishing himself as a fantastic player for this football club. We are constantly monitoring all our players and the fact that we have a mid-season break will be helpful for someone like Kyogo and that is a good time for him to get a rest. I know people get frustrated with some of my decisions and I don't always get them right but I always make sure I am utilising the information and knowledge I have and they are not made with any other thought than what is best for the player and the club."

Ange is repeating that he will do it his way when it comes to Kyogo. The Celtic supporters might not like it when he moves the player out wide or rests him altogether but it won't stop him from doing as he feels that he has a duty of care to the Japanese bhoy. Kyogo will certainly not suffer from burnout whilst Ange is at the helm. However, the Aussie insists that everything he does is for a reason and he is telling the Celtic supporters to trust him and trust the process. He is a big believer in the science of football and makes methodical decisions accordingly. "In Ange, We Trust", is the supporter's motto. Ange is aware that he has let them down on occasion this season and they might not see eye-to-eye on the subject of Kyogo all the time. However, Ange for the time being certainly knows best. Few Celtic fans would argue with that sentiment right now.

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On leading a team out at Hampden 

"I am super excited and looking forward to it and this football club has been a regular participant and visitor to Hampden in recent years and everyone tells me it is a fantastic experience. I am looking forward to it tremendously as are the players because for a majority of them it will be the first time experiencing it too. It is a massive game in the context of the season for us at this stage. We have done well to get to this stage as my biggest focus in the early part of the year was to not let inconsistency cost us down the line in Europe, in the cup and the league. I knew we would be up and down at the start with signing so many new players, playing a different way, with me being the new manager and there were some key games we needed to hit. It was important to beat Hearts in the first round of the cup and it was important to win that as it kept us alive in this competition. I knew we would eventually hit our stride and it was the same in Europe although we missed out on the Champions League it was important to qualify for the Europa League and just hang in there and we have managed that. It was the same in the league and I know we have dropped points but we are hanging in there and kept ourselves alive in all of those things and hopefully, we are more settled and we are playing fairly consistently now and I am pleased that we have given ourselves a chance to play a semi-final and an opportunity to progress to a cup final. We have hung tough through the early period and it is up to us to take the next step."

Ange is clearly excited at the prospect of going to Hampden and playing in a semi-final but he is also quick to stress that nothing has been achieved yet. It is a huge game for Celtic in the context of the season and it would be a measure of how far Ange's team have come since the summer. To reach the first domestic cup final of the season by defeating the League Cup holders St Johnstone would be a major feather in Ange's cap and would represent major progress as Ange's team would continue on their upward trajectory.

On the season so far 

"The players have shown some real resilience to get through the sticky patches and that is a good sign for me as it will help us get through the challenges that lie ahead. We will always have challenges at this football club. We have shown apart from our football the character in our team to push on and keep believing in what we are doing. We have improved a lot and we started at a fault low base because we were a brand new team and I look back at the two FC Midtjylland games in the Champions League and we hung on in there and the majority of our signings hadn't come to the club and we threw a lot of young guys in and we lost in extra-time. There was no real gap in quality but there were good signs for me that we were up for the fight as a football club and as a team. We have grown since then. How far have we come? I don't know what the endpoint is. I want us to be the best team we can ever be. I don't know what that is going to look like. My job is to keep improving and when we get to the last period make sure we are playing our best football of the season and if we do that we are giving ourselves every chance to be successful."

Ange is clearly setting his men targets and moving the goalposts as they go along. Ange's stamp is now all over this team and it is possibly time to ditch the work in progress tag. The Aussie insists he will stop at nothing until his side is playing in the style that he wants. However, Ange trusted the process from day one and despite the disappointment of crashing out of the Champions League to FC Midtjylland, the 56-year-old knew then that there was plenty to work within this team. There is really only one endpoint for Ange and the Celtic support this season and that is the reclaiming of the title from Rangers. If they can hit their stride and play their best football of the season then they will be a formidable object to try and stop.