Friday 10 February 2017 08:00, UK
Brendan Rodgers says he is prepared to spend big to make Celtic more competitive in Europe.
With the Hoops posting a profit of £19m, for the first half of the season, Rodgers believes this is the perfect time to strengthen the squad.
The Celtic manager told the Daily Record: "We will always push to make a signing if it is right for the club and right for the team.
"I have never been given a ceiling but I won't bring anyone in for the sake of it.
"We need players who want to take Celtic forward. Whether they are a million quid, £6m, £7m or whatever, the club know I will bring that to them.
"You want to keep a cohesive group, a tight-knit squad, you want to pay players what they are worth. Sometimes the market, depending on where you get them from, can be over-inflated.
"But if a player we feel is worth it, I will always look to convince the board that we can do that because the Celtic supporters deserve the best players.
"We've had players offered here who might sound great in terms of names but they aren't going to help Celtic.
You have to have one eye on today and one on tomorrow. You can't rest on your laurels.
"I need players who are coachable, who are hungry and have quality, whether they are experienced or not."
And Rodgers says he has frequent contact with the board, especially chief executive Peter Lawwell.
He added: "I meet the board regularly and speak to Peter just about every day.
"The best time to improve is when you are successful. As a football club you can't sit and glorify about what you have done, on or off the field.
"You have to have one eye on today and one on tomorrow. You can't rest on your laurels. There is risk and reward but you have to ensure the risk is worth it.
"Peter has shown wonderful leadership and we are very fortunate at Celtic with the intellect of the board."
Regarding Europe, Rodgers is keen to help the club reach the latter stages of one of the leading competitions.
In each of the last two campaigns, Celtic's interest in either the Champions League or Europa League has not extended beyond Christmas.
He went on: "It will never be easy but I am hoping last year's qualification will be the most difficult one we face, purely because we came in late.
"I don't think it gets easier in terms of tension and anxiety but I hope as we go on we will be in a better position to continue this cycle of Champions League and building."
