BRENDAN Rodgers may have just released an autobiography outlining his many achievements in the game and be on the brink of seeing his Celtic team equal an 100-year-old British record by going 62 domestic fixtures undefeated.

But the fear of getting the sack clearly never leaves a football manager, not even one who is enjoying as much success as Rodgers, and especially not once they have suffered that fate.

The Northern Irishman admitted he had sympathy for Pedro Caixinha, whose disappointing seven month reign at Rangers came to an end on Thursday, as he looked ahead to the Ladbrokes Premiership match with Kilmarnock this afternoon.

The Portuguese coach’s fate reminded him of the time he had “parted company” with Reading after even less time in charge.

“I had an experience that didn’t last that long,” he said. “I had 20 games. I probably shouldn’t have left Watford when I did, but I felt I was going to a club that I knew very well.

“You go in, you sign for three years and you believe you’re going to get the opportunity to do that. We lost 14 players that summer so there was a big overhaul. Young players came into the team. Then, before you know it, after 20 games, you’ve got the sack.

“So I think you can go in with all the best intentions. But what you learn is that you need to win games. The sack certainly promotes that idea in your mind! The first time it happens, it does. After that, you become that bit more clinical and understand the situation.

“It’s very, very clear in modern football that you need to somehow impose your way of working as soon as you possibly can. Like I say, at the big clubs with the big pressure and big demands to win, and to win in a certain style, you’ve got to be very clear and concise in how you do your work.”

Rodgers’s unveiling as Celtic manager at Parkhead in May last year was attended by over 10,000 jubilant supporters, but he knew, as his arrival was greeted by applause and cheers, that he had to deliver.

Asked if he had been concerned about getting sacked if he had struggled at the start with Celtic, he replied: “Yeah, I did. You live with that fear as a manager. Always. I think you can never rely on what you did yesterday. It doesn’t guarantee you success tomorrow.

“The worry for me coming in to here was, considering the people I grew up with and now working at the club I supported, that I would fail. And how that would feel. I still have that in my own mind. So that’s part of the driving force to ensure that you can never become complacent. As a manager you never stop thinking that way.”

The ongoing difficulties which Rangers are experiencing on and off the park prompted Graeme Souness to state that the game in this country needed the Ibrox club to be strong to ensure its long-term viability.

Rodgers, though, is focused solely on bringing success to Celtic and he was more interested in a remark by another Scottish football great this week.

Willie Miller labelled his side’s display in the 3-0 triumph over Aberdeen in midweek as the most impressive he had witnessed by an away side at Pittodrie.

“My worry is only for Celtic,” he said. “My worry when I came in here was to be the best that I could be. Go back 16 months ago when Celtic had lost to Rangers in the (Scottish Cup) semi-final.

“I have enjoyed us a lot in my time here. I think we put another signpost in the ground in terms of showing the way and the direction that we are heading in (on Wednesday night).

“I don’t look for validation, but there was a real nice comment from Willie Miller. He is someone I had seen growing up and someone I respected as a brilliant footballer. Towards the end of the game he talked about how he hadn’t seen a Scottish team play this way so it is important how we work. We still have a lot to do but we are getting there.”