Brendan Rodgers has been granted permission to talk to Leicester City over their vacant managerial position, Celtic confirmed.

Leicester is on the hunt for a new manager after Claude Puel was sacked after the 4-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace.

Rodgers and Rafael Benitez were both touted as potential candidates and, although the pair each insisted they were focused on their current jobs, it appears the Celtic coach is set to leave the Scottish Premiership champions.

Rodgers's former Liverpool star player, Steven Gerrard, now his rival as manager at Rangers, rates the 46 year-old highly, meaning the interest from the Foxes comes as no surprise.

"I've just been made aware that he's in talks with Leicester," Gerrard told a news conference of Rodgers. "For us, we just see how that pans out really.

"It seems [Rodgers is interested] otherwise he'd have declined the opportunity to talk to Leicester.

"My focus right now is Rangers and we've got a big fixture tomorrow against Dundee. That's my main concern right now, but we'll keep an eye on how it pans out across the road.

"I'm not really surprised by the timing because these things happen. Brendan has done ever so well at Celtic over the years so it's no surprise that other clubs are watching him and wanting to acquire his services.

"He's done a really good job and I've worked with Brendan so I know he's a very good coach."

Rodgers managed both Swansea City and Liverpool in the Premier League, coming close to winning the title with the Reds in the 2013-2014 season.

He has won two Scottish Premierships, two Scottish Cups and three Scottish League Cups since taking over at Celtic Park in May 2016.

Celtic became the first team in Scotland to go unbeaten during a 38-game league season during Rodgers' first campaign in charge, going on to make it a record 69-match undefeated streak.