Scott Brown backed to become Celtic manager by Brendan Rodgers

The Leicester City boss reckons Broony could well follow in the footsteps of Billy McNeill by returning to the club as the main man in charge.

Brown, 36, terminated his contract at Aberdeen earlier this week, just nine-months into a two-year deal.

It remains unclear whether he will hang up the boots to fully focus on his coaching career, or whether there's still scope to continue as a player for the time being.

It was reported yesterday that Rodgers is prepared to welcome Brown into the King Power setup to allow him to expand his coaching development at a Premier League club.

But the former Parkhead gaffer believes whatever Brown decides to do next, eventually, in the fullness of time, he will emulate Lisbon Lion hero McNeill.

Rodgers told the Daily Record: "I do think that one day that could be the position for him but I’m not sure it’s the best step for him to go back right now.

“If you look at it, Ange is doing a great job and he’s very clear in how he works. Then, behind him, you’ve got a brilliant coach in John Kennedy who is there to support the manager and you also have Gavin Strachan and Stephen McManus.

“So you have good coaches there already and, below that, it’s always been Celtic’s way to bring through their own young coaches.

“I’m not saying Scott wouldn’t be a great addition to that. He would. And I’m not saying he needs to put distance between himself and the club either. It’s about him having the time to allow him to grow and develop in his career, wherever that is.

“But I definitely think there will be a pathway for him to go back to the club at some point in the future. He’s obviously been a fantastic player and captain of the club and he could go on to follow in the footsteps of Big Billy.

“I’m pretty sure if Brownie really wants to do that then I think he will do it. But it’s about building up the skill set to best enable him to become the manager of Celtic and deal with the pressures and the expectations he’ll then encounter.”

He added: “I have absolutely no doubt he can then go on to do really well as a manager or a coach. It’s just about waiting for what he sees as the right opportunity.

“He could go in as a coach and give players little bits of gold dust from his own playing career. So he could start by doing that and then go on to become a manager somewhere down the road.

“Or he could step straight into a manager’s position because he’s been such a leader all this time. He could then have other coaches around him.

“But there’s no doubt that having someone like him at your club, whatever club that is, would be absolutely fantastic.

“Management requires a different skill set. Just because you are the highest level of player you can’t just expect to go straight into the same level as a coach or manager."