NEIL LENNON departed as Celtic boss only 17 days ago – but he insists he is ready to plunge straight back into management.
The Irishman left Parkhead only 48 hours after a dreadful 1-0 loss to Ross County at Dingwall as the quest for a historic tenth successive title collapsed in inexplicable fashion.
Lennon, 49, made his exit two years after answering an SOS from the champions following Brendan Rodgers’ sudden move to Leicester City.
He guided the Hoops to five consecutive domestic honours before a catastrophic campaign that saw the team trailing in the title race, out of the Champions League after a flop against unseeded Ferencvaros in Glasgow in August and axed from the Btefred League Cup by Ross County, again at Parkhead, in November.
Lennon, who was working as a BBC 5 Live pundit for Manchester United’s 1-1 draw with AC Milan at Old Trafford last night, admitted managing Celtic was a “real privilege”.
Asked by commentator John Murray if he planned on getting back in the dug-out, he said: “Yes, absolutely.
“Listen, I had a brilliant time at Celtic. It just wasn’t our season this season.
“But the players have achieved incredible things up there in the last sort of five or six years.
“It was a real privilege.
HAMPDEN HERO…Neil Lennon is a winner after the dramatic finale in the 2020 Scottish Cup Final on December 20.
“I’ve had a bit of a break, stayed in the house like everybody else is doing at the minute.
“But I’m sure I’ll get the itch sooner rather than later.
“I am really enjoying what I am doing tonight, I have to say, John. It’s brilliant to be here.
“It’s a high quality game of football at the minute and AC Milan are playing very, very well.”
Lennon stressed Celtic would always be special to him and added: “Well, I had 20 years sort of player, coach and manager so a huge part of my life.”
Ironically, the last time the Irishman watched AC Milan in action they were scoring four goals against the Hoops in the Europa League Group H encounter at the San Siro when they came back from 2-0 down to win 4-2.
They had previously beaten Lennon’s side 3-1 in Glasgow during a humiliating group outing for the Scottish club.
