Gordon Strachan has defended Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers, insisting following Ange Postecoglou's reign at Parkhead is like "headlining a concert with the Rolling Stones as your support act".

The 51-year-old has faced criticism for his side's performances this season after an early League Cup exit and poor Champions League campaign.

Rodgers' men currently sit top of the Scottish Premiership, three points ahead of rivals Rangers who have a game in hand.

And while Strachan admits the Hoops can definitely play better, he feels the Northern Irishman is more than up to the challenge of winning silverware between now and the end of the season.

Speaking to Lord Ping, he said: "Following in the footsteps of Ange Postecoglou isn’t an easy task for any manager.

"It’s like headlining a concert with The Rolling Stones as your support act. All the best trying to follow that, and that’s what it’s like at Celtic at the moment.

"Brendan knew what he was getting into when he came back to Celtic, and he wanted that challenge. Is the league a little bit more difficult compared to when he last there?

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"I would argue that it might be. The one thing that I’ve seen over the last few years in the Premiership is that teams like St. Mirren, Hearts, Hibs, they are becoming more physical and are making it more difficult for the likes of Celtic.

"There has been an emphasis on height and strength over the last couple of years and I think that’s shown by the limited number of home-grown players that are coming through in Scotland at the moment.

"The media will ask Brendan why his team aren’t performing as well as we know they can, and he’ll give honest answers that are then written as excuses, so management can be a bit of a word game sometimes.

"I think Brendan can play the media game well – I wouldn’t like to take him on at Scrabble (laughs)."