23 September 2023 , 15:37
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Brendan Rodgers stepped in to intervene after stewards attempted to apprehend a young Celtic fan who had run onto the pitch following Saturday's 3-0 win at Livingston.
Rodgers, 50, was seen walking over to the travelling Celtic fans to celebrate after full-time, with victory coming courtesy of goals from Reo Hatate, Matt O'Reilly and Daizen Maeda. The Scottish champions played the majority with 10 men after Joe Hart was sent off in the 28th minute for a professional foul.
The result, which keeps Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership, led to one overexcited young fan entering the field of play, where he was pounced on by stewards. Rodgers, though, quickly came to the youngsters rescue before guiding him back into the crowd.
He even referenced the incident in his post-match interview with Sky Sports, where he bemoaned the stewards' intervention. Rodgers explained: "It's just common sense. The wee guy at the end, he wants to see his heroes. He shouldn't be punished or prosecuted for that. Especially when the security guy's a lot older than him."
Celtic's win at the Tony Macaroni Arena means Rodgers' side have now collected 16 points from a possible 18 so far this term. The win was also the perfect tonic for fans who had seen Celtic lose 2-0 against Feyenoord in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
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Rodgers was full of praise for the character his players showed following Hart's red card. He told BBC Scotland : "We have to show another side to us when we go down to 10 men. I thought the players dealt with it brilliantly. Tactically they were very good. Defensively we were strong.
"It was an outstanding win for us. Huge credit to the players. It's a monumental effort on the back end of a Champions League week."
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Stewards had initially apprehended the youngster after he ran onto the field of play (Twitter)Hart's dismissal, which was a consequence of him taking out Livingston midfielder Mo Sangare, may have left his side depleted, but Rodgers defended the former England No.1 during his post-match interview.
He added: "It's the first time [Joe Hart's] been sent off in his career. It gave us a chance to show our mentality and personality and we definitely showed that.
"I think we're getting better. I'm just so happy for the players and the supporters. Happy for Daizen Maeda as well - it's not like playing with 10 men when you have him in the team because he covers so much ground. "