Former Celtic Head of Performance Glen Driscoll has opened up on the sweeping changes introduced by Brendan Rodgers during his first spell in Glasgow, revealing how the coaching team set out to transform standards across every department at the club.
Driscoll, who worked alongside Rodgers throughout both of his Celtic stints before departing with him in October last year, played a key role in reshaping the environment at Lennoxtown following Ronny Deila’s exit.
The overhaul ultimately laid the foundations for one of the most successful campaigns in the club’s history, with Celtic securing an historic Invincible Treble in 2016/17.
Reflecting on those early days, Driscoll admitted the difference between Celtic and the elite environments he had previously experienced was immediately apparent.
Speaking to World Football Index, he said: “When we arrived at Celtic, it was clear there was a significant gap between where the club was and what you’d consider an elite performance environment, both on and off the pitch.
“Coming from Chelsea and Liverpool, that gap was quite noticeable. But it was also a huge opportunity.
“We were able to quickly improve structures around performance, operations, staffing and processes.
“My focus was always not just on short-term performance, but on creating systems that would sustain success over time.
“When we returned to the club years later, many of those structures were still in place. The performance processes, staffing models and even elements of the training methodology were still being used.
“I could even recognise training drills that I’d run three years earlier!
“That’s very satisfying, because it means what you built became embedded in the club culture. It creates stability and allows managers and staff to operate more effectively.”
Driscoll also recalled an early visit to Celtic Park before Rodgers had even been unveiled, revealing the trio already had ambitions of achieving something extraordinary.
“I remember my first visit to Celtic Park, before Brendan had even been officially announced.
“It was just Brendan, Chris Davies and myself walking around the pitch. I remember the conversation going something like: ‘We can’t just win here, we need to do something special.’
“We didn’t know exactly what that meant yet, but in hindsight, we were probably plotting the Invincible Treble without realising it.”
He also praised the recruitment, backroom staff and players for embracing the new regime from the outset.
“When we arrived it was clear there had been issues within the medical, sports science and nutrition areas the season before. That meant there were some relatively quick wins available.
“Brendan also had a very good first couple of transfer windows. Players like Scott Sinclair and Moussa Dembélé came in.
“We also had excellent staff already at the club. John Kennedy was incredibly impressive.
“The players bought into the intensity of the training straight away. You could see they were hungry for that level of work.
“Once that momentum built, the season just unfolded in an incredible way.”
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