The time is NOW to bring Scott Brown back to Celtic

In terms of succession planning perhaps Brown's former club Celtic should take a leaf out of the Reds' book and go 'Back to the Future' and restore a once historic Liverpool tradition.

Formed by legendary Scots boss Bill Shankly on his arrival at Anfield in 1959 the 'Boot Room' lasted right up until the early 1990s and was the meeting place for all the Liverpool coaching staff who would sit, drink tea and discuss the team, tactics and ways of defeating the opposition.

The Boot Room became an "unofficial institution" at the club and would go on to produce four future Liverpool managers in the shape of Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan, Kenny Dalglish and Roy Evans over thirty-nine years.

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It remains to be seen if Brown will cut it as a boss in his own right. A 15-month stint with English League One side Fleetwood Town came to an abrupt end in September last year despite a run to the fifth round of the FA Cup and Brown dragging the 'The Cods' up from 20th to a respectable 13th place in the table. That wasn't enough to save Brown from the axe but far from being bitter about the experience the 38-year-old is excited for his next football challenge.

This is why Celtic could do a lot worse than establishing their version of the 'Boot Room' at Parkhead and helping groom the former club captain to take over the managerial reins at some point in the future.

Ironically it was Rodgers who prolonged Brown's playing career when he arrived in Paradise in 2016 and just when he was all set to embark on a coaching career. Brown was helping out with the Celtic Under-20s team and was as fully committed to that task which was hindering his ability on the field. It was Rodgers who got him back on track as Brown revealed the Northern Irishman took him aside and said: "Look, there’s loads of time for coaching".

It was those seven simple words that transformed Brown's life and led to a renaissance in his playing days and Indian summer that transformed his mindset Now with Rodgers at the Celtic managerial helm again the stars could well have realigned...and not for the first time in both men's careers.

Brown is a serial winner. He grew accustomed to winning and lifting silverware at Celtic. When he left after 14 years of sterling service the club paid homage in the best way possible with a three-word social media sign-off - Captain. Leader. Legend. That said it all. It spoke volumes for the esteem that Brown is still held in down Glasgow's east end.

Brown may well have left Celtic but the club has never left him. He told anybody who would listen that Celtic would beat Rangers at Parkhead on December 30. He was a lone voice in the media as all the focus was entirely on how Phillipe Clement had built a Rangers team that was now capable of taking the title race to the wire.

When he was put on the spot by Sky Sports host Eilidh Barbour whilst performing punditry duty on Boxing Day as Celtic ran out 3-0 winners against Dundee at Dens Park, Brown said with a glint in his eye and rather mischievously: "Celtic win. Not a problem."

He's also convinced that Celtic are a shoo-in for this season's Scottish Premiership title. It would take a brave person to argue against his logic. There was a calmness to his thoughts. It wasn't arrogance or over-confidence. It was all based on realism. He learned all of those traits from Rodgers. Who'd have thought it? Brown has heard it, seen it and done it all before as a Celtic player.

There is a maturity to Brown these days. He readily admits that he's stolen everything he has learned in football coaching and management from those he has worked under. That's only natural.

Martin O'Neill would not have been half the manager he was at club level if he didn't serve under the legend that was Brian Clough. The same goes for Gordon Strachan. Would he have been the managerial figure he was if he hadn't learned under the tutelage of Sir Alex Ferguson? Even Ange Postecoglou revealed that he took his coaching philosophy from the great Hungarian footballer Ferenc Puskas.

As Brown said: “I've stolen everything from all the coaches and managers I’ve had in the past. Everything I’ve got, I’ve stolen.

“If you ask the top managers, they stole from somebody else as well. You take the small details and you might manipulate them a little bit. At the same time, there is no right and no wrong way. If you win a game on Saturday nobody is going to say ‘You didn’t make this pass' or 'You should have done this or that’. That is all forgotten about and you just go on to the next game.

"I was down seeing Ange Postecoglou and Davie Moyes as well recently. They couldn’t have been any better with me coming in. They have two different ways of playing football. Ange presses extremely high, is very dynamic, high up the park, and puts teams under pressure. Davie is more of a mid to low-block and catches teams on the counter. It shows there is no right or wrong way and every manager has his way they want to play.

“For me, it is good to learn both ways and then I can learn where I want to be. That’s what Davie said, he said don’t get pulled into anyone else’s way and thought process, just be your own person. When I spoke to Davie and Ange about that they've changed as well because they can't be who they were 15 or 20 years ago. That is what top managers do and that’s why they have been so successful over the years. I’ve changed from who I was 15 to 20 years ago as I am definitely a lot more mellow."

READ MORE: Celtic icon Brown has learned 'everything' from ex-managers

Scott Brown - mellow? You better believe it. Brown revealed that he is also willing to go anywhere to seek out work and put himself through the interview process even if it leads to nothing because it is all good experiences as he attempts to climb the rungs of football's managerial ladder. If every day is a school day then you do get the feeling that 'Scott Brown's Schooldays' have only just begun in terms of football management.

The biggest irony of all is that Brown never got the chance to say a proper emotional goodbye to the Celtic supporters when he quit the club just after the 2020/21 season to take up a coaching post at Aberdeen after they had lost out on the coveted 10-in-a-row. It is the only blot on Brown's copybook if there is such a thing.

Brown is still lauded and loved by the Celtic supporters to this day. His presence in the current dressing room would be a source of comfort to the Celtic faithful and would be cheered to the rafters. So, maybe it is time for Celtic and Rodgers to start their version of the 'Anfield Boot Room' with a green and white hue. Nobody would grudge the club opening their arms wide and welcoming back the prodigal son - would they?

Brown learned to be a serial winner under Rodgers as a player. There is nothing to suggest that the two could repeat the magic formula if Celtic were to give Brown another crack at coaching and management by accepting him back into the fold. It's also a challenge that Brown would undoubtedly rise to and relish more than anything.

As Brown said: "The biggest thing I have learned is to stick by my morals and no one else’s. I knew what I was doing but probably fell into the trap of what other people might think. There’s no right or wrong way. It’s about understanding how I want to play.

"Sometimes I’d play a different way, either due to personnel or other people on the outside getting inside my head a bit. I hope I’ll be a better manager the next time I go in. It was a huge learning curve and I believe I’ve grown as a coach and as a person. Now, I need an opportunity to go again. If I get that bit of faith, I have to repay it."

Spoken like a future manager. Why can't that club be Celtic? Bring back the 'Boot Room', Celtic. If it was good enough for the likes of Shankly, Paisley, Fagan, Dalglish and Evans then it's surely good enough for Brown.

If Shankly were alive today he'd probably say something like this: "Celtic were made for Brown and Brown was made for Celtic".