Brendan Rodgers criticised by Hearts manager Jon Daly for his 'baffling' and 'disgraceful' pre-match comments

Hearts interim manager Jon Daly launched a blistering attack on Brendan Rodgers after his side lost 4-1 to Celtic on Saturday, blasting the Northern Irishman for his “baffling” and “disgraceful” pre-match comments.

Daly was only put in charge of Hearts in midweek, after Ian Cathro was sacked by the club.

Ahead of the match, Rodgers expressed his empathy for Daly and the situation he had been put in. But the former Liverpool boss also questioned the recruitment policy at Tynecastle Park.

“He is trying to play football and you are bringing in players who play a direct game,” Rodgers was quoted as saying. “So it makes me ask about where the players are coming from or if they are his.”

And after losing 4-1 to the reigning Scottish champions, thanks to a brace from Leigh Griffiths as well as strikes from Scott Sinclair and Callum McGregor, Daly came out firing in his post-match press conference.

“It is absolutely disgraceful,” he said of Rodgers.

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“I think it is very poor form. A manager of his calibre should know better.

“I followed Brendan's career when he was at Liverpool and never once did I hear him make a comment about Man United's structure, about Chelsea, about Man City's structure, but all of a sudden he comes to Celtic and he thinks it is acceptable to talk about the structure of our football club.

“Our club at the moment is very easy to pick on and kick, but for a manager of his calibre to come out and make the comments he did was unacceptable.

“I can understand the comments made about the manager leaving but once he starts talking about the recruitment of players, fitting into the system and questioning Ian's authority, it shows me he doesn't know Ian Cathro very well.

“There is no chance that any of those players that came in the door would have come in without Ian's say-so.

“Brendan is a knowledgeable man. The fact that he thinks Michael Smith, Kyle Lafferty, Christophe Berra, Rafal Grzelak, Connor Randall don't suit a 3-4-3 system baffles me. It really does.

“We have wing-backs, strikers, centre-back, combative midfielder, it is actually farcical that he thinks they didn't fit into that system and the fact that he thinks that other people around the club makes the calls and to comment on it is an absolute disgrace."

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Daly brought his furious post-match interview to a close by warning: “I haven't spoken to him but I will tell him when I see him that I am not happy.”

Rodgers was then informed of Daly’s comments in his own interview after the match, but attempted to diffuse the situation by saying that he wants the 34-year-old former Rangers player to be given the job on a permanent basis.

“I hope Jon gets the job. I have nothing to respond to,” Rodgers said.

“There is no drama. I said when I first came up here I will be open and say what I think and we move on.

“There is no issue with it, no drama, it's how they want to take it. My focus was on the game and my empathy was with the former manager Ian Cathro.”