Charlie Mulgrew – Celtic missing John Kennedy’s influence

In partnership with

The Celtic Star

·1 April 2026

Charlie Mulgrew – Celtic missing John Kennedy’s influence

Charlie Mulgrew has claimed that Celtic’s disappointing season can be linked the departure of John Kennedy…

Brendan Rodgers and assistant John Kennedy attend a team training session at the Celtic Training Centre in Lennoxtown. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)

The reason why Celtic sit third place in the league with seven games remaining is mainly down to recruitment in both windows being a disaster and the catastrophic decisions made by those in charge from pushing Brendan Rodgers out the door to appointing Wilfried Nancy.

Video OneFootball

The situation worsened following Rodgers’ departure in October, with John Kennedy also leaving the club. Both have since being appointed manager and assistant at Al Qadsiah, who currently sit fourth in the Saudi Pro League.

Mulgrew believes Kennedy’s exit, in particular, has left a significant gap within the setup that Celtic have yet to replace.

Brendan Rodgers and assistant John Kennedy attend a team training session at the Celtic Training Centre in Lennoxtown. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Speaking on Open Goal, he said: “This season has shown that there’s a lot of things needing sorted. Hopefully it’s a blessing in disguise that things get done because the departments, for a club the size of Celtic, the departments need to be spot on. They need to get that right.

“I personally think, from my experience and reading between the lines, I feel like John Kennedy’s been a huge miss. You know that he was putting the work in. I’m not saying they [the players]are doing the same stuff, I think the level of preparation that goes into it [has lessened].”

“But I think the amount of work he did is now being seen. It can’t be relying on one man, it’s a huge club. There’s so much to be done.”

20th August 2023; Rugby Park, Kilmarnock, Scotland: Scottish Viaplay Cup Football, Kilmarnock versus Celtic; Celtic coach John Kennedy looks out from the Kilmarnock tunnel

Kennedy’s influence at Celtic extended well beyond just being the assistant manager for 10 years, with the former Hoops defender playing a key role across multiple areas of the club’s football operations.

After being forced to end his playing career in 2009 due to a serious knee injury, he transitioned swiftly into coaching, establishing himself as a dependable figure through several Celtic managers.

Conor Spence

Post your own thoughts in the comments section below…

Quick Tip – Add thecelticstar.com as your ‘Preferred Source’ on Google News for quick access to the Celtic content you value the most. It takes just a few seconds and you’ll notice the difference straight away! – Click HERE….Hail Hail!

Click to join Celtic Pools