BRENDAN RODGERS has warned there will be no hiding place from hard work as he strives to take Celtic to the next level.

The Hoops gaffer insists sheer graft must go hand-in-hand with talent if his players are to play a prominent part of his vision for the club.

Celtic have just returned from a training camp in Dubai where they have been preparing to continue their dominant first half of the season.

They already have a 19-point gap in the Ladbrokes Premiership and a Betfred Cup in the bank, and their manager will not accept anything less for the rest of the campaign.

Read more: Rodgers looking for Celtic to kick on with season as they say goodbye to Dubai

He said: “Sometimes at a big club like Celtic – your talent can hide you in among other good players. 

“You can be hidden and you can be protected a little bit which means you don’t have to work quite so hard because your ability takes you there. No chance. 

“If you’re not working here you will be out, regardless of your talent. I think I said it before a few months back: some players will struggle to keep up. 

“Their talent is there but they can’t keep up with the demand. So your talent won’t be protected. 

“You can be a good player but it’s not enough. If you want to be elite and you want to be the best then you have to align the work mentality with the talent. That means you push, every single game you play, and the next game is always the critical one.”

Rodgers also stressed the importance of  a team effort in surging for silverware in the second half of season, citing the benefits of their recent break in the UAE as a valuable bonding experience for his players.

Read more: Rodgers looking for Celtic to kick on with season as they say goodbye to Dubai

“Should we be successful it will be as a team and a squad and that’s been evident over the first six months,” he said.

“The squad has really come together and become very strong so we need to develop and grow that even more.

“The last six months of 2016 were a great period for us as a club and the supporters are happy which is important. The players are also happy and working well and we are gaining results and that’s what we are in the business to do.”

Meanwhile, Kolo Toure is relishing the prospect of working with Celtic new Bhoy Kouassi Eboue after the Ivory Coast wonder kid completed his move to Paradise earlier this week.

The midfielder penned a four-year deal after making the switch from Russian outfit Krasnodar, and fellow Ivorian Toure is keen to get to know his countryman on and off the pitch.

Read more: Rodgers looking for Celtic to kick on with season as they say goodbye to Dubai

“I haven’t seen anything of him but I know what he’s gone to the national team,” Toure told the Celtic View. “I’m looking forward to training with him so I can see what he’s capable of.

“From what I’ve heard he seems to be a really good player, and when I talk to him I can see he’s a young player who wants to be one of the best and he’s hungry. I like that.

“I told him I’ll try to help him settle in. When you come here you need to be guided by people and I’m not the only one. Moussa Dembele and Dedryck Boyata are doing that as well. We’ll try to welcome him so he can express himself for the club.”