Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has admitted that he was aware of interest from clubs in taking him back to the English Premier League, but he isn’t interested in leaving the Scottish champions.

Both his former club Swansea City and West Ham have been linked with making a move for Rodgers in the recent past, and he conceded that both he and the club knew that there was concrete interest from clubs in England who wished to lure the Celtic boss south of the border.

“Yes, I have been aware of possibilities, as have the club, but it’s not on my radar at all,” Rodgers said. “I’m very happy.

“I’m 44, so I’ll hopefully have another 20 years or so as a manager, and my love for here has brought me here, so I’m not running away from it quickly.

“The process of how I heard doesn’t matter so much. My ambition is for Celtic, I’m not worried about myself and my own ambition.

“I saw a friend of mine die this week in Dermot Drummy, and there’s obviously a real sadness for him and his family of course. It makes you wonder about football and life, and what I’ve gathered from when I came out of Liverpool and had that seven months that allowed me to reflect, the next club I came to I wanted to be happy in.

“There’s ambition, but I’m working at one of the biggest clubs in the world, so I’m in no rush to leave. The Premier League is brilliant. I loved it there and I worked with two great clubs. This is never to say that I won’t go back there one day, but there’s not even a notion that I’m thinking of.”