Chris Sutton has defended Brendan Rodgers after the Celtic manager was accused of casual sexism towards a BBC reporter on Sunday.
After a 3-1 comeback victory over Motherwell, Rodgers was criticised for calling Jane Lewis a "good girl" in an interview.
This has led to accusations of casual sexism and misogyny on the part of Rodgers, with both the Scottish Feminist Network and For Women Scotland groups calling for the Co. Antrim man to apologise.
Rodgers is due to face the media on Tuesday afternoon, ahead of a Scottish Premiership encounter with Dundee on Wednesday, but according to Sutton, the former Leicester boss has little to apologise for.
“… good girl.”
Brendan Rodgers. pic.twitter.com/ARv9vhp2RG— Kerrydale Meltdown (@KerryFail) February 25, 2024
Chris Sutton defends Brendan Rodgers
"I went to interview Brendan for Sky at the start of the season," the ex-Celtic striker said on the It's All Kicking Off podcast.
"On a couple of occasions, he called me 'lad'. That's his terminology. He'll probably view it as a misstep."
Sharing a clip of the podcast on his own Twitter account, Sutton posted the following caption:
"It may have been a poor choice of words but there is a huge difference between that and casual sexism as some have suggested… what is the world coming to?"
Sutton's comments are a rare example of defence from him towards Rodgers this season, with the Englishman having regularly been critical of Celtic's performances on the pitch.
It may have been a poor choice of words but there is a huge difference between that and casual sexism as some have suggested… what is the world coming to🤦♂️??👇👇 https://t.co/E4f8zCc3jW
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) February 26, 2024
Brendan Rodgers sexism controversy
People online have criticised Rodgers for the remark, with many calling it condescending, while talkSport presenter Jeff Stelling also weighed in on Monday morning, saying: "good girl, good girl? Goodness me, Brendan. What does he mean?"
During the interview in question, Rodgers was defending his players after a recent run of patchy form, saying "a story has been written about this group but we will write our own story."
When asked to elaborate by Lewis, Rodgers tells her that the interview is over before saying "good girl, well done. Good girl."
Whatever defence Rodgers comes up with, his comment certainly sounded patronising towards Lewis, who has been working in journalism since the 1990s.
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