‘My joy was complete’ – Rodgers admits legend’s return was the icing on the cake

Can you summarise that 90 minutes?In the end, we succeeded. The scoreline gives the impression that it was more relaxed than it was. Though I must commend my players, we fell very short of our desired performance. There were some excellent individual performances among them, and it was truly amazing how the guys persevered till the very end. It’s fantastic to see Daizen (Maeda) get his hattrick. A large portion of our imaginative play occurred on the right side, with Daizen completing it on the left. A huge thank you to Livingston, since they have had a challenging season. They came here, put on a tremendous challenge that we had to meet head-on, scored a few goals, and made it really difficult for us.

Is it tough to respond to the same queries in games like these about how you advance to the next level and how you slightly ease your own path?

I am aware of its nature. The football won’t smile the same if important players and players of our level are absent. I think the performances will get better once we have those players back.

For Maeda, 100 games. First hat-trick as well. How significant is his contribution, coming in and playing that kind of game, given the absence of key players?

It was excellent. He offers so much. He is pushing and making a contribution with his work rate and effort when the ball is in opposition, but it’s great for him to score as well. Runs that truly hurt teams, all instinctive. While it’s simple for players to get to their feet, he had to race and execute a series of manoeuvres to reach his destination, which he executed with great skill.

Did Nicolas Kühn come off with a hamstring injury?

All he felt was a slight stiffness. Clearly, he hasn’t played a lot. That was excellent because it was more direct, more running, and more aggression—much more like what we would expect from him in the game. When James Forrest entered the game, my happiness was complete because it was admirable to watch how he received and handled the ball.

Gives you more things to think about?

With all due respect, James is the finest winger we have. All we ask for in the game is that kind of intensity—continuous pressure and constant runs.

Is it a matter of age, or can he regain that?

Regretfully, age catches up with all players, intensity, and people in general! He still has something to contribute, and you saw how good he is when he entered the game with 25 minutes remaining. He is a terrific player, and it was exciting to see him play. His work ethic and ball control were excellent.