Celtic have appointed Paul Tisdale as the club’s head of football operations, in a move manager Brendan Rodgers insists will give them a “new edge”.

The 51-year-old helped the Scottish champions on a consultancy basis during a successful summer transfer window and has now joined the Hoops on a permanent basis.

A former coach at MK Dons, Bristol City and Yeovil Town, the ex-Exeter City boss set up his own consultancy business during lockdown, aiding clients such as Crystal Palace and Fulham on operations, coaching development and analytics.

“I have known Paul for some time and have been well aware of his work,” said Rodgers.

“I know that he will be a huge asset to Celtic and that his knowledge, talent and tremendous work ethic will be crucial to us as we drive forward across a number of areas, always with the aim of delivering higher performance and more and more success.

“He is a hugely talented man who I know will make a real positive difference to us and give us a new edge. He knows modern football inside out, he understands what we need as a club, what our team needs to operate at a high level, and how we can develop positively and successfully across a number of functions within the club.”

Celtic chief executive Michael Nicholson added: “Talent identification and talent development, from our Academy through to our first team, is of fundamental importance to the club’s strategy, and Paul has tremendous expertise in these areas.”

Tisdale said: “Celtic demands and deserves excellence across all areas and I know that that is something the board and Brendan seek at all times.

“In my role I will be doing all I can to further develop our work across talent identification, development and analytics, always with the aim of ensuring high-level support of football performance.

“Having knowledge already of Celtic, I know there are so many quality, authentic people at the club all pulling in the same direction and passionate for success.”