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By GARY KEOWN and KENNY STILL and PAUL FORSYTH Published: 02: 00 AEST, 2 May 2025 | Updated: 02: 00 AEST, 2 May 2025 View comments So it’s mission complete for Brendan Rodgers’ former assistant Chris Davies as he prepares to wrap up a record breaking League One campaign with Birmingham City, with a Manager of the Year award to go along with the league trophy presented last weekend. The personal accolade marked a stunning first season in the dugout, with Birmingham on course to reach a quite outrageous season total of 108 points if they can win their final fixture away at Cambridge United on Saturday. With 42 wins in his 58 matches since taking over last June, Davies’ decision to branch out on his own has been more than vindicated. Having soaked up top-level experience alongside Rodgers at both Swansea and Liverpool, and then swept up silverware galore at Celtic before another accomplished spell as No 2 at Leicester, Davies already knows more than most about high achievement. And the fact his Blues side conquered all competition this season in such style can perhaps be put down to working alongside another former Celtic boss. Davies spent an enjoyable spell at Tottenham — the free-flowing, much-vaunted 2023-24 vintage rather than this year’s hapless Premier League flounderers — alongside Ange Postecoglou last season. Birmingham City boss Chris Davies has won League One in his first season as a manager Davies has become a fine boss in his own right after working with Brendan Rodgers and Ange Postecoglou Englishman Davies was a close confidante of Rodgers during the Northern Irishman's first spell in charge at Parkhead Of course, promotion this season was pretty much a non-negotiable for the 40-year-old, given the investment put into Birmingham by their US investors, with sporting superstar Tom Brady on board as a minority owner. Merely being promoted to the Championship won’t be enough to keep the pressure off the shoulders of a manager with such an incredible track record. As Daniel Farke may soon learn at Leeds United — and countless more before him at clubs with wealthy benefactors and big dreams — sometimes if a manager lacks the X-factor of an available A-list option his face no longer fits the glamorous vision owners have for their plaything. It feels ludicrous to even suggest it on the back a stunning first-season success but, in the event of a shaky start to life in England’s second tier next term, how long before Rodgers and Postecoglou are being touted for the job Davies has performed with such aplomb? Why North Curve are warning that their 'tangerine' protest was only the beginning North Curve, the Celtic ultras collective, have made it clear that the fruit-throwing protest over ticket prices that disrupted Saturday’s title party at Tannadice is not the end of their campaign against what they term a ‘culture of greed’ in Scottish football. Fans behind the goal threw tangerines onto the field in the 13th minute of their side’s 5-0 hammering of the hosts while unfurling a banner which read ‘Enjoy Th£ Fruits Of Our Labour’. They also hurled 40 footballs onto the park early in the second 45, which they have asked United to donate to local children’s charities, and held up another banner reading ‘Stop Pricing Fans Out Of Football’. Celtic fans were particularly outraged over United raising prices for the game that clinched the Premiership crown for their side - and many in other areas of Tannadice applauded Saturday’s events. Tangerines had to be cleared from Tannadice pitch after they were thrown on by Celtic fans protesting at ticket prices The match was also delayed at the start of the second half when fans threw footballs on the playing surface too The travelling supporters make their message clear with a banner unfurled at Tannadice on the day Celtic won the league However, a statement from North Curve, which represents fan groups in Parkhead’s standing section such as the Green Brigade and the Bhoys Celtic, has stated their anger extends to other clubs - including their own - and that they are talking to other supporters’ groups across the country to work out what’s next in trying to force change. The statement read: ‘At £40, the away ticket price reflected a 25 per cent (£8 increase) from the same fixture on December 22, 2024. ‘All clubs are responsible for this culture of greed, selfishness and pettiness which is pricing out working people. We understand that ticket revenue is vital to Scottish football. However, there must be consideration given to the supporters who remain the heart, soul and blood of our game. ‘Once again, we emphasise the need for Scottish football to review its relationship with supporters. There must be a proper framework introduced to engage with supporters and protect their interests. ‘We remain in communication with supporters’ groups across Scotland on how best to achieve this. ’ North Curve also released figures which claimed that the average Celtic fan possessing a £619 season book for Parkhead would have paid a total of £1867 on tickets alone to take in every match their club played home and away this term. ‘Despite this already excessive cost, we expect further increases next season - sadly led by Celtic with an unjustifiable five per cent minimum increase in season ticket prices for 2025/26, ’ their statement read. ‘In addition to unfair pricing, Celtic also persists with an unfair ticket allocation process with zero transparency on how tickets are allocated. ’ Liam Scales weighs up the challenge of becoming more trustworthy than Auston Trusty  Liam Scales has long since proved he loves a challenge, but even he must be getting fed up continually having to justify his place at Celtic. The trouble for the Irish defender, who has just battled his way back into the starting line-up at the expense of Auston Trusty, is that he may have to do it all over again in pre-season with Brendan Rodgers likely to reassess his defensive line-up. Having splashed out over £6million to bring Trusty north of the border from Sheffield United, it doesn’t take a great leap of faith to assume that Rodgers’ intention was to team him with international colleague Cameron Carter-Vickers in an all-American defence. You only have to look at Celtic’s Champions League starting line-ups. Whenever both of the USA centre-halves have been available, Scales has sat out the action. Defender Liam Scales has done an admirable job after stepping in for Brendan Rodgers' signing Auston Trusty Scales has been a reliable presence for the Premiership champions and will be looking to make his place permanent Defender Scales will be looking for revenge on Rangers when the teams meet again on Sunday The Republic of Ireland international still featured in most of Celtic’s domestic games for the first half of the season, thanks to a combination of injuries and fitness issues with his rivals for a defensive slot. However, a poor display in the 3-0 New Year Old Firm derby defeat to Rangers seemed to stick with Rodgers, who limited Scales to just 29 minutes of league action across the following nine games. A facial knock suffered by Trusty against St Mirren in early March saw Scales step off the bench to replace him, yet he too picked up an injury of his own and missed the next three matches, opening the door for Maik Nawrocki’s sudden reappearance for the 3-2 defeat at Ibrox. While Nawrocki was unlucky to lose his place to Trusty when the American was fit again, a 1-0 defeat at St Johnstone sparked another change of heart for Rodgers and Scales has been back alongside Carter-Vickers ever since. With Nawrocki likely to move on in the summer, along with Swedish defender Gustaf Lagerbielke — an impressive performer on loan at FC Twente this season — there is a strong possibility Rodgers may look to add another face into the mix, presenting a fresh obstacle in Scales’ path. In the Irishman’s favour, though, is the fact he is currently the man in possession. If he gets the nod to face Rangers this weekend, a big performance will be crucial for the 26-year-old. Not only will it exorcise his demons from the New Year, it would see him stake a serious claim to keep Trusty at bay and retain the shirt for the run-in and next month’s Scottish Cup final. Eye-catching statistics released this week by respected football data site Data MB also reflect well on Scales, who has been named the highest-performing centre-back in the Scottish Premiership this season. Two and three on the list? Well, that would be Carter-Vickers and Trusty. So impressive were the Parkhead trio in Data MB’s ‘passes per 90 minutes’ metric that the three of them sit atop a list of serious European talent, ahead of the likes of Bayern Munich pair Kim Min-jae and Dayot Upamecano, as well as Pau Cubarsi of Barcelona and Marquinhos of PSG. Of course, Celtic’s dominance of possession compared to domestic rivals renders the comparision pretty moot, but it is still a nice feather in the cap for the data analysts and laptop brigade at Lennoxtown. Many will always choose to focus on the rough edges in Scales’ game, and Rodgers may hope that a season of acclimatisation for Trusty will be enough for him to revert to his American dream pairing. Whatever happens, you can expect Scales to embrace the challenge. The more you write him off, the harder he’ll hit back to prove his doubters wrong. It's 55 and counting for Brendan Rodgers and his relentless Bhoys  It seems like only yesterday that the number ’55’ became almost synonymous with Rangers and their title-winning exploits down the years. Having stood so long on 54 championships, the Ibrox club finally got another one under Steven Gerrard in 2021, racking up a total that was unmatched anywhere in the world. It was supposed to signal a sea change in Glasgow football — Rangers chairman Dave King had predicted that Celtic would fold ‘like a pack of cards’ — but it hasn’t quite worked out that way. With four titles in a row since then — the latest secured at Tannadice last weekend — Celtic have now matched the fabled 55 and look well equipped to overtake Rangers in the history books. A young fan shows his delight at Celtic winning title No55 after they thrashed Dundee United last weekend Brendan Rodgers' side celebrate another title triumph and will be desperate to make it No56 next season While Rangers are on the cusp of new ownership and bigger investment, Celtic have their money in the bank and an infrastructure that will help them to build on their success. Not that either of them can claim to hold the world record when it comes to domestic titles. That honour goes to Linfield who made it 55 shortly after Rangers in 2021. The Northern Irish side have since been crowned Premiership champions twice more under David Healy, the 57th coming in March when there were still six games to play. But even Linfield are not the most successful club in world football. Yes, they have the most titles to their name, but when it comes to silverware, someone else tops the lot. Al Ahly, the Egyptian club, have won no fewer than 125 trophies, which is five more than Celtic, seven more than Rangers and eight more than Linfield. Of those, ‘only’ 44 are league championships, but the Cairo-based side are regular winners on the continental stage, most notably with 12 African Champions League titles. Stuart Armstrong proving not quite so Invincible with Sheffield Wednesday  Among the players across Britain confronted by an uncertain future at the end of the season will be Stuart Armstrong, whose short-term contract with Sheffield Wednesday is soon to expire. The 33-year-old former Celtic midfielder, who was part of Brendan Rodgers’ Invincible side, has had an unsettled time of it since being released by Southampton less than a year ago. First there was a short stint with MLS side Vancouver Whitecaps. Then a move back to England in January, since when fitness and injury issues have restricted him to 11 appearances for Sheffield Wednesday. There have been glimpses of his old self in those games, but it emerged this week that Armstrong’s deal will not extend into next season and so far there has been no talk of an extension. Stuart Armstrong was a top class performer for Celtic at home and abroad, and was part of Brendan Rodgers' Invincibles side Armstrong's move to Canada with MLS side Vancouver Whitecaps proved to be short lived Armstrong, above right, has since moved to Sheffield Wednesday but has struggled to assert himself there for various reasons With Wednesday set to finish mid-table in the Championship, their manager, Danny Rohl, admitted that they had a decision to make and that Armstrong would have options elsewhere. ‘I will not go too much into details, ’ Rohl said. ‘When he arrived he had no pre-season and it was maybe a bit difficult, but you see now how much quality he has in moments and it is maybe a shame the season is nearly over. It is a decision for both sides. Stuey took this to help the club and I knew what I could get from him when he is fully fit. ‘He had ups and downs, a break, a small injury which took some rhythm. Now he is getting better and it is… what to do with certain players. You can offer him something but I can also imagine Stuey will get some options from other clubs and these are the decisions we have to make as a club. ’

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