NEIL LENNON celebrated a personal ‘Double Magnificent Seven’ triumph at the weekend – and it went unnoticed.
Celtic walloped shell-shocked St Johnstone 7-0 on Flag Day at Parkhead with the Irishman achieving something Brendan Rodgers couldn’t in his two-and-a-half years in charge – guide a Hoops team to a seven-goal scoring feat.
And Lennon had another reason to celebrate a magnificent seven – before the visit of the Perth outfit, he had triumphed in all six of his previous opening league games in the Premiership.
In his first stint at the Hoops, the former club captain led the side to four big kick-off successes and he emulated the achievement in two years with Hibs before his return to the east end of Glasgow in February after Rodgers’ rapid exit for Leicester City.
Lennon went into the game against Tommy Wright’s McDiarmid Park team with consecutive victories over six different rivals – Inverness Caley Thistle, Hibs, Aberdeen, Ross County, Partick Thistle and Motherwell.
THREE CHEERS…hat-trick hero Ryan Christie.
He can now add St Johnstone to that impressive list.
Lennon obliterated the fact the team hadn’t claimed seven goals in a game during the tenure of Rodgers.
However, having last achieved the feat in Ronny Deila’s final match in charge against Motherwell in May 2016, they did it again after a wait of more than three years.
Comeback striker Leigh Griffiths notched the last of the seven against the Saints and, speaking to the Daily Record, emphasised: “The gaffer likes to play attacking football.
“He always likes to be on the front foot and he wants to make this place a fortress.
“Teams were coming here last season and putting 11 men behind the ball and they were scraping points here and there.
“But this year, we will be even more on the front foot. Our front players are unbelievable and we will get better moving forward.”
