Neil Lennon ‘got’ Celtic. He was a rookie appointment, and the early weeks were far from comfortable, a Hampden defeat to Ross County looked like an ominous early sign, but from the start of his first preseason he didn’t look back.
He was a hugely successful Celtic manager in Scotland and in Europe. The Barcelona team of the last six years, possibly the greatest team in history, were at their peak when they visited Celtic Park in November 2012. Neil came up with the game plan which brought Celtic victory and raised our profile across Europe.
What he had to endure off-field during his time at Celtic was atrocious and a blight on our society. But he overcame it. He stuck it out when you or I may have left, and now he leaves on his own terms – an undisputed winner.
More at another time on who next, but if we get a man nearly as capable we will be doing well.
Take care, Neil.
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Petec
Lucky Break or Reds snooker halls in Clydebank. Good shout.
On me third Whiskey Sour(plus pint).
Pretty sure Thunder Road will be on proper whisky in Dura, you young whippersnapper!!
DD, I thought your performance today was exemplary. You may not win the BAFTA this year but keep at it. This time next year Nicole Kidman will be picking up her drawers and sneaking out of your gaff in the early hours too embarrassed to wake you lest she upsets your routine.
Just remember me when you’re getting yer heid chopped off by a zombie walker in game of thrones. I’m your new agent.
And, lose 12klios or the gig’s off.
HH bruv
Coneybhoy
01:57 on 23 May, 2014
Petec
Quality post, spot on, reality vs blogs
HH
_________________________________
The game today is all about Pace, apparently. Is it f*ck. It is about intelligence and great team play. Neil continues to be the Best ever Team Player.
If Henryk is installed as Manager, will that mean Ronaldhino will be brought to play for his Hero, preferably @ the Number 10 position?
Excitement and 60000 guaranteed, EVERY game!!!!
I don’t think a lot of Celtic fans will fall for the Henryk appeal alone.
Coney
Life is too short bud.
Love thy neighbour.
MicktT
I had to punch the tuba player in the guts cos he called me a Fenian, and then we all ran as ma Da drove up. We dived in and never went back!!
Great punch
Our Lady and St John Focus Youth Club always swam in that school!
As i say, being a Tim in Ayrshire was a challenge but i still love Ayrshire
ACGR
If you can fix me up wi Kate Bush?
I will lose weight and die very happy. :))
Sorry DD
Was a bit of a flashback. I could have done with some ‘relaxant’ back in the day….
DD….. so yer a wee fat bald bassa…
Offski!
Delaneys Dunky
02:04 on 23 May, 2014
Petec
Lucky Break or Reds snooker halls in Clydebank. Good shout.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Coolio, I do know that number 6 table in the Harp is pretty good, get the finest table, you do know, we may only play 1 frame, if that. ;)
Email me and I will forward my mobile.
2 in a bird is worth 1 in Kate Bush
DD, nae bother bud, I’ve got her and other auld granny’s on speed dial for just such an occasion.
Bring your equity card.
Haha
GNGB Bhoys!
Got some Lisbon Lion chaps to meet at 8.30
I’m off to Dumfries tomorrow. Now that’s a town where hunnerism is the name of the game save for a few wee tim enclaves (DBBIA gave me the nod).
Anyway, it will be interesting to see if my hun BOL even brings up today’s events. He knows what can of worms that might open.
Looking forward to playing sclaffbaw at Southerness wi him just the same.
Work beckons.
HH Celtic, Hail Hail Neil Lennon.
A Ceiler Gonof Rust
02:29 on 23 May, 2014
I’m off to Dumfries tomorrow. Now that’s a town where hunnerism is the name of the game save for a few wee tim enclaves (DBBIA gave me the nod).
Anyway, it will be interesting to see if my hun BOL even brings up today’s events. He knows what can of worms that might open.
Looking forward to playing sclaffbaw at Southerness wi him just the same.
Work beckons.
HH Celtic, Hail Hail Neil Lennon.
____________________________
I work in Rosyth and the way things have happened, I am in with a lot of East Coasters. Their Joy about him Leaving and the vitriol towards Neil really emphasised to me the Propaganda the Press have Engineered…Works.. I knew this a long time ago.
It annoys me, It is the Media that stokes the flames, Always.
Celtic are Sanitising itself totally for a plc World.
I mean a PC woRld.
feck I am messing it up.
ICU if you get there, if you ever get there
The Truth Hurts.
Delaneys Dunky
02:26 on 23 May, 2014
Song says it all
Do unto others as… The Golden Rule. How Many really do that?
Even in Blogosphere?
It is all really Relative IMO, useless opinion. ;)
I voted UKIP as a protest against mass immigration.
My thinkkking is a lot more detached and more a highlighting of the Tower of Babel. Who Knows?
Let us talk about the Tower of BABEL?
Coneybhoy
01:03 on
23 May, 2014
The Irish contribution to the fight against the Kaiser is often forgotten.Sadly.
My old man was at Gallipoli and went from there to the Somme where he copped a gobful of shrapnel.After recuperation he was sent back to the front and,as you probably guess,survived till the end of the war.
Reckon I`m just lucky to be here,even as an afterthought.
Nice chatting.
So Neil Lennon makes it clear that he did not quit because of issues with the board or budgets or any such thing, yet the usual suspects were on here 5 minutes after his resignation, blowing that particular trumpet on the back of a tweet from a BBC journalist. I repeat . . . a tweet from a BBC journalist !!!
It seems some people will suck up anything the SMSM throw at their dancing feet, so long as it suits their agenda.
And those same people, believing a journalist’s tweeet only minutes after the resignation, will now disbelieve another report quoting Neil Lennon as saying his decision had nothing to do with budgets or lack of support.
Suddenly, Lenny will be a liar and the tweeting journalist a paragon of truth and virtue.
It’s the way it works in the world of the permanently petted lip.
The Collins Brothers really did do some good Books.
The Ascendency of the Scientific Dictatorship was one, I went to read it one Time and it had Disappeared. Spooky? I was tempted to buy the more comprehensive book as well.
Nonsense to anyone that does believe in Evolution.
ACGR
Vive la brigade verde.
HH
On such a day, it was great to see just about every poster I had ever seen on here get on with a contribution.
Fantastic actually.
We lose some and we gain some but life goes on.
Celtic goes on.
The king is gone but long live the new king.
Night all.
HH
Tom
I just saw your post.
I have obviously missed his interview or comments.
Can you direct me to where I can find them.
Thanks
HH
A track for Neil….
Neil is still Standing.
No body knows what Neil has went through. Nobody knows what ANY person has went through. Judgemental people are usually cowards that like to be herded like little kids. I hope they grow and become powerful individually, Like the Creator Wants us All to be.
The lunchtime in amongst the fifers and east coasters was very annoying.
Stuart – Neil is far to Good for Scotland.
I have just been reading about the amazing discovery of the world’s largest dinosaur in Patagonia, Argentina.
The animal’s femur alone is taller than a normal man and the beast is believed to have been heavier than 14 elephants.
The fossils have been lying undetected for 150 million years, until a farm worker happened upon them by accident.
The world really is a wondrous and amazing place.
Gold Coast Tom
04:00 on 23 May, 2014
I have just been reading about the amazing discovery of the world’s largest dinosaur in Patagonia, Argentina.
The animal’s femur alone is taller than a normal man and the beast is believed to have been heavier than 14 elephants.
The fossils have been lying undetected for 150 million years, until a farm worker happened upon them by accident.
The world really is a wondrous and amazing place.
___________________________________________
It is indeed.
We may get a beer together soon.
My thinking may impact on you, I reckon the Bible has so much info, that people are not being exposed to.
tbc
Morning CQN,
I suppose it has now sunk in that NFL is gone. Quite interested as to the sudden decision as comments he was making (if to be believed) about certain players makes no sense on the sudden announcement.
I hope Lawell was aware this was coming and work is already being dine on finding a credible and suitable replacement.
Interesting times ahead one thinks…..
Hail Hail
SPC
So Neil Lennon becomes the third successful manager to leave Celtic without a job to go to during Peter Lawwell’s tenure as chief panjandrum.
Well done,Peter. Neil serves his apprenticeship with us,and you piss him off so much,he walks out.
What was the problem this time? Asking for sufficient quality in the side to but bums on seats-and occasionally to get them off the seat in admiration and anticipation and simple joy?
I’ve always said that I support Celtic,not PL. But he needs to remember that he isn’t Celtic. He couldn’t be more divisive as a Chief Executive if he tried,but he might consider trying this for an idea.
Leave the football stuff to football men. It’s your job to provide them with the means,not the instructions.
PL is everything that is wrong with football today,cash is king,one-minute managers and two-minute memories.
Exclusive: Garcia high on Celtic’s short list of candidates to replace Lennon
Stewart Fisher and Gary Keown
Friday 23 May 2014
OSCAR Garcia last night emerged as a surprise candidate to replace Neil Lennon as Celtic manager.
Oscar Garcia has impressed in Israel and England since leaving Barcelona. Picture: Getty Images
The 41-year-old former Barcelona midfielder, who resigned from Brighton and Hove Albion earlier this month after they lost to Derby in a Premier League play-off semi-final, is believed to be keen on a quick return to the technical area and is thought to be high on the short list being compiled by chief executive Peter Lawwell in the wake of Lennon’s departure after four years in charge.
Malky Mackay, the former manager of Cardiff City and a one-time player at Parkhead, is understood to be of interest with Owen Coyle also available, having reportedly turned the job at Celtic down in 2010 prior to joining Bolton Wanderers from Burnley.
Henrik Larsson, who heads the betting along with David Moyes, received high-profile support from Martin O’Neill, one of Celtic’s greatest former managers, last night, but the Swede has been sending out mixed messages.
Larsson has stated his commitment to Falkenberg, whom he took over at the start of the year, while confessing that he remains in touch with Celtic and sees himself returning, one day, to the club he served so prolifically as a striker for seven years.
However, Garcia’s arrival as one of the lead contenders provides a fresh and exciting avenue to explore as Lawwell consults with Lennon over his successor, having failed in initial negotiations to talk him out of his decision to leave.
In addition to his contacts in Catalonia, his youth, and his commitment to attacking, possession-based football, Garcia rubbed shoulders with his prospective Parkhead paymasters while taking charge of Barcelona’s Under-19 team in the NextGen Series against Celtic back in 2011, prior to leading Maccabi Tel Aviv to the Israeli title in the 2012/ 13 season.
However, the SPFL champions will have to act decisively as Garcia – represented by Pep Guardiola’s brother, Pere – has no shortage of admirers. He has been strongly linked with the Southampton post should Mauricio Pochettino accept the vacant Tottenham Hotspur manager’s role, and is also thought to be on the radar of West Bromwich Albion, who recently parted company with another Spanish manager, Pepe Mel.
Ironically, Garcia’s departure from the south-coast club – he cited a lack of investment and the sale of star players Ashley Barnes to Burnley and Liam Bridcutt to Sunderland in January – has echoes to the situation that led to Lennon’s resignation.
Having sneaked into the play-offs with a last-day victory against Nottingham Forest, Garcia stood down after a 6-2 aggregate defeat to Derby. Sources close to Lennon have said that he made his mind up to leave Celtic about 10 days ago and conveyed this to the club’s powerbase, including majority shareholder Dermot Desmond, in meetings at the beginning of this week.
Lennon insisted he had no other job lined up and would enjoy
a short holiday before starting media work at the World Cup finals in Brazil. He is expected, however, to provide input on the identity of the man who will follow in his footsteps.
“I feel the time is now right to move on to a new challenge,” he said in a club statement.
“I will now assist the club in appointing my successor.”
Speaking later to STV, he said: “I’ve covered all the bases and feel it’s a good time to go. It’s not a knee-jerk decision . . . it’s been going on for a while. The team is in good health.”
Larsson, his one-time team-mate, remains at the head of the betting market along with Moyes. O’Neill, now in charge of the Republic of Ireland, believes he must be in with a live chance of being appointed.
“Larsson was just phenomenal, phenomenal,
as a player,” stated O’Neill. “He’s had a little time as well as a manager in his own country and, if you say they have stopped taking bets on it and that he is a very, very strong favourite, why not? He would be a great fit for Celtic again.”
Larsson conducted a number of interviews on his future yesterday and told Swedish reporters that there was no basis to rumours he had
been approached by the Glasgow club. “It is not true,” he said. “I understand that is always a job that will be associated with me after my years as a player there. It is obviously nice. Sure, I can see myself as manager of Celtic and going there in the future, but, right now, it’s full focus on Falkenberg and the job to remain in Allsvenskan.”
However, Larsson later spoke to STV and refused to confirm or deny negotiations with Celtic, creating the distinct impression that he would be open to an approach.
“I can see myself back at Celtic,” said Larsson. “Whether it’s now or in the future, time will tell. Let me put it this way,
I always have had good contact with the people at Celtic and I continue to have good contact with the club.
“That’s all I’m going to say. It’s up to you to work out if there’s been contact.”
Good morning from a rather grey, but fresh morning in the Chilterns.
So it’s goodbye to Lenny ~ came as a stand-in ~ left a success in anyones book.
Well done Neil. Of course the way the team was playing at the end of his tenure was excellent.
But my guess his time in charge will be remembered for events, fitting he was Manager when Rangers died.
I’ve got Neil’s last book ~ would love to read the no-holds barred sequel ~ not going to happen though, at least not for some time.
But well done Neil and good luck for the future.
Hail Hail
Now to enjoy the calm after the storm
Michael Grant
Chief football writer
Friday 23 May 2014
MOMENTS after the lengthy discussions concluded and the decision was made, Neil Lennon walked down the tunnel and out into the bowl of Parkhead.
It was 1am. The stadium was empty and silent. The only illumination was from the moonlight. He had never seen the place looking so serene. The date was June 8, 2010, and Lennon had just agreed the deal to become the permanent manager of Celtic.
Two days later Lennon painted that picture at his first media conference, unprompted. He would effortlessly cough up colour and insight like that for the next four years. Another line from that day: it was the first time he talked about getting Parkhead rocking again and bringing back “the thunder”. All of it was a dream for the headline writers and for his club’s marketing department.
After the limp surrender of the Tony Mowbray regime Lennon restored Celtic. By “thunder” he meant noise, passion and spectacle and he delivered that, at least in some memorable spikes in Celtic’s campaigns.
He said something else on that first day which is oddly relevant to his departure. He had walked out into the stadium in the dead of night “to get a breath of fresh air because we had been in there for a fair length of time”. What is he doing now, having tendered his resignation, if not exactly the same thing? Lennon has been with the club for a fair length of time, since 2000 as player, coach and manager, with only a brief interruption when he went south and felt a bit lost without Celtic in his life. He’s leaving to get his breath of fresh air, a permanent departure from his club and a new chapter in a career which will be fascinating to follow from afar.
The time comes when any Celtic or Rangers manager recognises that he has trundled to the end of the line. Only the successful ones have the privilege of an exit strategy and it is to Lennon’s credit that – like Martin O’Neill and Gordon Strachan, and unlike Mowbray – he leaves on his own terms.
It was far from guaranteed that it would end well when Celtic placed the team in his hands four years ago. Boardroom reservations were apparent from the fact he was initially given only a 12-month contract. Aged only 38, Lennon understood why he was often described as a “rookie boss” but I felt he bristled about that a little and was glad to win a Scottish Cup after his first season, and a league title at the end of his second, so that mild disrespect was removed.
Celtic blew a winning position in his first league campaign by losing in Inverness Caledonian Thistle with four games left, a result which can still send a shiver up his spine. Ten games into the following league season the wheels threatened to come off the cart. Celtic were 3-0 down at half-time against Kilmarnock (that was still the score past the 70th minute) and Lennon began to get that feeling of detached helplessness managers experience when things are spiralling out of their control.
Celtic salvaged a draw and it was an ordeal he came to identify as the turning point in his management.
Three consecutive league titles were collected after that, each easier than the one before. The winning margin over Rangers in 2011/12 was 20 points and would have been a very comfortable 10 even if the Ibrox club had not been docked the same number for going into administration. Without Rangers his winning margins were 16 points in 2013 and 29 this season.
The removal of the eternal rival reduced the pleasure of finishing above others. The dulling of the contest led attendances to fall at Parkhead and diminished Lennon’s sense of achievement.
In the cup competitions his record was poor, just two wins in nine campaigns. Some of the defeats provoked fierce criticism from supporters who pointed to the resources and asked how Celtic lost to Ross County, Kilmarnock, Hearts, St Mirren, Morton and Aberdeen. There was defeat in a final to Rangers, too, but also Scottish Cup triumphs in 2011 and 2013. A crippled Rangers was seen as a free pass to collect a treble but only in 2012/13, with a league and Scottish Cup double, did Celtic lift more than one trophy.
That was the season when the thunder was at its loudest. On November 7, 2012, the decibel levels were deafening. Celtic’s 2-1 defeat of Barcelona in the Champions League group stage will forever remain the iconic 90 minutes of Lennon’s reign. The team grew in Europe under him, posting steadily improving results in each of his first three seasons and culminating in qualification for the last-16 of Uefa’s premier competition.
From there, the evidence of decline became obvious. Over his four seasons Celtic went out of Europe in August, then December, then March, then December again. What turned out to be his final European tie brought the bitter sting of losing 6-1 to Barcelona.
The peak came in 2012/13, the season of the double and the last 16, the team of Victor Wanyama, Gary Hooper and Kelvin Wilson. He accepted the departure of Wanyama and Hooper as an inevitable consequence of the Celtic business model, just as he was sounded resigned to Fraser Forster and Virgil van Dijk also leaving sooner rather than later.
A Celtic manager is under annual pressure to deliver Champions League group football with foundations built on sand. On balance his judgment in the transfer market was above average. James Forrest, one of his favourites, was a rarity when it came to home-grown talent.
It has become a cliche to write about the “real” Lennon, and how he is a far more thoughtful, composed and intelligent man than many believe him to be. But it is true. For a while he was quick to anger on the touchline, losing his rag at refereeing decisions so often that he admitted major shareholder Dermot Desmond had given him a “talking down” at times. He is calmer now. Experience, maturity and the absence of Rangers made life easier.
Mercifully he leaves at peace, not hounded out by hatred. He had to deal with far too much of that. He was among the victims of a campaign of letter bombs and bullets sent through the post in 2011. It was in that year, too, that a thug leapt out of the stand at Tynecastle and attacked him. There were times when Lennon looked exhausted by the stress of his existence back then – he had a bodyguard on matchdays – but his resilience was consistently impressive.
This week he decided he had ridden the rollercoaster for long enough. There was no intrigue over his departure. Like his mentors, O’Neill and Strachan, four or five years was enough. The thunder he whipped up reached its crescendo in 2012. Now that it has died down, for Celtic and for him, the time had come to move on.
Search for the successor: Some familiar faces and a poster Bhoy are in frame for Celtic job
Graeme Macpherson
Football Writer
Friday 23 May 2014
Oscar Garcia
Oscar Garcia
A left-field prospect, the former Barcelona midfielder could offer the sort of European background that may prove appealing to the Celtic board. Out of work after leaving Brighton and Hove Albion after a season in charge, the Spaniard has prior experience of working within the youth ranks at Camp Nou before spending a year with Maccabi Tel Aviv, leading the Israelis to their first title in a decade. The 41 year-old has been linked with the Southampton post should fellow Spaniard Mauricio Pochettino move on to Tottenham Hotspur, but is also thought to feature on Celtic’s shortlist.
Henrik Larsson
There were bets placed on the Swede even before it was announced that Neil Lennon would be leaving and he remains among the favourites for the role. His status as one of the club’s finest players will earn him the instant goodwill of the supporters, even if his managerial experience is limited. His first coaching role with Landskrona in the Swedish second tier was a disappointment, the club failing to win promotion in three attempts leading to Larsson’s resignation. He took over newly-promoted Falkenbergs last December and has guided them to 11th place after 10 games this season. Larsson has been typically enigmatic about the prospect of a return to Celtic as manager although has not ruled it out.
David Moyes
This time last year, the idea of David Moyes managing in Scotland would have seemed laughable. The Scot’s star was in the ascendancy having been chosen as Sir Alex Ferguson’s successor at Manchester United and he was expected to enjoy an extended spell in charge of one of the biggest clubs in the world. Now, though, the prospect of him pitching up at Celtic doesn’t seem so daft. His brief time at Old Trafford bordered on the disastrous and it was little surprise when he was cut adrift towards the end of last season. One difficult campaign, however, doesn’t suddenly make Moyes a bad manager, and prospect of a return to Celtic – where he was a player in the early 1980s – may hold some appeal.
Malky Mackay
Another Celtic old boy, Malky Mackay’s success down south, combined with his availability, would seem to make him a viable candidate. He succeeded Brendan Rodgers at Watford, his work there in the Championship prompting Cardiff City to recruit him in 2011. He took the Welsh club to their first League Cup final – losing only on penalties to Liverpool – while the following year he guided them to the Premier League. A difficult working relationship with owner Vincent Tan earned him the sympathy of many, those feelings heightened when Mackay was sacked last December. He may now relish the chance to return home to take over a club he represented for five years in the mid-90s.
Steve Clarke
The former St Mirren defender confounded expectation when he was appointed West Bromwich Albion head coach in 2012. Seen by many simply as a No.2 after years serving managers such as Jose Mourinho, Ruud Gullit, Gianfranco Zola, and Kenny Dalglish, Clarke showed he can be his own man too when he took over at the Hawthorns. His first season was a roaring success as West Brom finished eighth in the table, their best placing since 1981. The second season was not as successful, and Clarke was let go in December with West Brom hovering close to the relegation zone. Said to be a Celtic fan, a move back north may prove appealing.
Owen Coyle
Coyle famously turned down the chance to manage Celtic before Tony Mowbray was appointed in 2009 because he wanted to keep working in the Premier League in England. Things have changed since then, though. The former Republic of Ireland player is out of work after leaving Wigan Athletic in December last year and would almost certainly be interested in the prospect of taking over at the club he supported as a boy, having had a clause inserted in his Wigan contract that would have allowed him to sign for Celtic if they approached him. Coyle’s tenure at Wigan was brief and inglorious but his successes with St Johnstone, Burnley and Bolton Wanderers may make him desirable to Celtic.
Jackie McNamara
If prior service as a Celtic player lends weight to a candidate’s claim to be the next manager, then Jackie McNamara is in a strong position. The full-back spent a decade at Parkhead, winning four league titles, three Scottish Cups and three League Cups before leaving under a cloud due to a contract wrangle. Providing that previous ill-feeling isn’t an insurmountable stumbling block, McNamara would seem likely to feature on any shortlist. In his first managerial job he took Partick Thistle to the cusp of promotion back to the top division, before moving on to Dundee United where he has earned plaudits for creating a young, vibrant side who impressed many on their way to the Scottish Cup final.
So, DD let Stephen Gallacher in on the news on Tuesday. In which case, Stephen’s last comment is maybe a clue to the new bhoy? Or, have I done 2 plus 2 and got 3?
Desmond teed me up with the news on Tuesday, golfer Gallacher reveals
Nick Rodger
Golf Correspondent
Friday 23 May 2014
Stephen Gallacher, the Scottish professional golfer and avid Celtic supporter, last night revealed that he had been sitting on the news of Neil Lennon’s departure from the club for the past 48 hours.
The 39-year-old, who is competing in this week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, has forged a golfing friendship with Celtic’s majority shareholder, Dermot Desmond.
Gallacher admitted that the Irish businessman had marked his card about Lennon’s future during dinner at the European Tour’s annual awards night at a Heathrow Hotel earlier in the week.
He said: “I knew this a couple of days ago. I had spoken to Dermot on Tuesday and he told me we were looking for a manager but he wouldn’t tell me who. I have played golf with Dermot a few times and he knows I am a big Celtic fan. I was sitting right next to him at dinner.
“I think Lennon has done a great job. It is just unfortunate we have had to sell our best players. I don’t know who we will get it but Davie Moyes would be good,” he added.
Keane links to vacant Celtic job not a concern, insists O’Neill
Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane
DANIEL MCDONNELL – PUBLISHED 23 MAY 2014 02:30 AM
MARTIN O’NEILL anticipates that Roy Keane’s name will be thrown into the mix in the speculation about a new Celtic manager but fully expects his assistant to be in the Ireland dugout come September.
‘If anything does happen Roy and I will have a chat’
The Derry man thinks that Henrik Larsson, who starred for him during his stint as Celtic boss, is the perfect fit to take the job vacated by Neil Lennon.
However, he wasn’t surprised to be asked about Keane yesterday, believing that the Corkman’s appointment as Ireland assistant has put him back on the map and therefore makes it inevitable that he will figure in discussion about the summer managerial merry-go-round.
O’Neill is relaxed about persistent questions around Keane’s status, and doesn’t consider it to be a distraction from Ireland’s Euro 2016 mission.
“Since he has come in, there have been a number of things which he has been linked to,” said O’Neill.
“And I wouldn’t be surprised if his name is linked with a number of things. It started off with him as assistant manager to Louis van Gaal – and that hasn’t materialised.
“If something does materialise, we’ll have a conversation and I’m sure he would tell me first of all what might be happening if that was the case. And then I would have a discussion with him and I would hope that if it was something so extraordinary that you would seriously have to think about it, I could understand that.
“But that has not happened and generally speaking, he’s pretty well committed to here.
“If Roy’s name is linked with that particular job it’s because he has an affinity with Celtic too, having stepped out of Manchester United, I know at the end of his career, to play at Celtic, when he had an opportunity, I believe, to play in Spain.
“And he turned that down to go to Celtic. So I’m sure his name will be linked with it but if you tell me that they have stopped taking bets on Henrik Larsson, then maybe it’s done.
Lennon exit hastened by feeling of being trapped
Lack of a real challenge and inadequate transfer budget left departing boss with nowhere left to go at Celtic
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Neil Lennon will have an input in the appointment of his successor at Celtic, according to the club’s website. Photo: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images
RODDY FORSYTH – PUBLISHED 23 MAY 2014 02:30 AM
Word that Neil Lennon and Celtic were close to a parting of the ways after his four years in charge had bubbled under in the Scottish game for a week or so, but the timing of the news of his departure yesterday evidently caught the club off guard.
The first confirmation came shortly before noon from the manager’s agent, yet it took Celtic until late in the afternoon to acknowledge as much on their official website. Meanwhile, the bookies had installed Hoops legend – and Lennon’s former team-mate – Henrik Larsson, as favourite to succeed him.
It’s understood, however, that the Swede is not the front-runner, with Malky Mackay, Owen Coyle, Paul Lambert and David Moyes – whose odds were cut from 10/1 to 7/2 during the day – all being considered. Whoever is appointed – and according to the Celtic website, Lennon will have an input – will take charge of a club currently without effective rivals in the Scottish title race, but expected by supporters to make the Champions League group stage at least.
FRUSTRATION
But the surprise of Lennon’s decision to quit Celtic is that it did not happen a year ago. Over a drink after a football awards dinner in Glasgow in May 2013, the Hoops manager confided his frustration to this correspondent when he said: “What is there left to do here?”
He was speaking after a season in which Celtic had cantered to the Scottish title without hindrance from Rangers, who had plunged through the divisions after their financial calamity under Craig Whyte.
But the ennui of a foregone conclusion on the main domestic front had been offset by a spectacular progress in the 2012-13 Champions League group stage, which had seen Celtic qualify for the last 16.
En route they had taken Barcelona to the final kick of the ball before losing the decisive goal in a 2-1 defeat in the Nou Camp, but extracted revenge with an epochal victory over the Catalan giants in the east end of Glasgow.
Celtic got no further than the first knockout round, where they lost to Juventus – but neither did Manchester United or Arsenal, while Chelsea and Manchester City had been eliminated at the group stage.
Morning everyone.
Not read back yet but a wee thing that is a shame about Neils departure…..it would have been nice if he had got a chance to say a proper goodbye to the support.