Brendan Rodgers has revealed he would like Francis Turley to stay at Celtic after handing the Northern Irish teenager his competitive debut in the Scottish champions’ 3-0 win over St Mirren yesterday.

Turley, who caught Rodgers’ eye during pre-season and scored in the 6-4 win over Queens Park, came on for Reo Hatate near the end of the William Hill Premiership match at the SMiSA Stadium.

His manager, who is set to lose playmaker Matt O’Riley to Brighton, is keen to strengthen his squad in the final week of the transfer window and has been linked with left back Alex Valle of Barcelona in the Spanish media.

However, he believes the 18-year-old midfielder would be best remaining at Parkhead during the 2024/25 campaign.

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“I think he needs to stay,” he said. “I was really impressed with him over the course of pre-season. He still has a lot of maturation and I think that what we don't need to do is put a lot of hype into a young 18-year-old. Just take your time. He's a talent and we've seen talents leave here because they're impatient. 

“I don't see that, being with Francis now over the summer, he signed a new deal, had his family in. They trust the club, which is important in his development. So, for me, it's giving that hope to the young players that they have a place here. He still has so much physical development to come, but technically, he's very good in the game.

“That just gives him that bit more oxygen and that feeling of being out there for Celtic. But he knows himself he's got a lot of work to do. But that's why he's here. And it's great for him and his family and, like you say, for Northern Ireland.”

(Image: Andrew Milligan - PA) Meanwhile, Rodgers has praised the performance of Paulo Bernardo in the 3-0 triumph over St Mirren, a result which sent the Scottish champions two points clear of Rangers at the top of the table ahead of their meeting with their city rivals at Parkhead this weekend, in Paisley.

The Portuguese midfielder, who was brought in from Benfica for £3.5m at the start of the month, slotted into the berth vacated by O’Riley and acquitted himself well alongside Hatate and Callum McGregor.  

Rodgers expressed hope the summer signing’s familiarity with the Celtic style of play - Bernardo spent the 2023/24 campaign on loan in the East End of Glasgow - will ensure that O’Riley is not missed in the months ahead.

“I think that's the beauty of having him here before,” he said. “He understands the structure in the team and how we play and how we work. Matt, obviously, has been away down at Brighton and it meant then we bring him [Bernardo] in and he understands how we play and work. 

“The strength of us is the team and the structure and there's no burden left on any one player. So, Paulo coming in [it’s a message of] just play your game. And I thought he did very, very well.”