OLIVIER NTCHAM will face the wrath of Neil Lennon when he returns to Celtic on Monday.
The 22-year-old midfielder, bought from Manchester City for £4.5million in the summer of 2017, has some explaining to do following remarks to the French media, as CQN reported a week ago.
Ntcham was on duty for his nation during the European Under-21 Championships when he was quoted as saying he had been “really disappointed” he did not get a move to Porto a year ago and he also insisted he would “blossom” if he got the chance to play for Marseille.
Lennon declared he was “not satisfied” with the player’s comments and the Irishman will demand answers from the engine-room performer who last time around rarely hit the heights of his debut campaign.
The Hoops boss, in an interview with the Daily Record, said: “I don’t need to speak to him, he has to come and see me, his team-mates and the club.
“We’ll see him on Monday and then he can start his pre-season work. He’s had two and a half weeks off, so he won’t need a lot of conditioning work – maybe a bit upstairs.
“I will need to have a chat with him on that. It’s a question of sitting down and having it out with him. Finding out where that came from and what his mindset is.
“It’s new to me. For him to go public about it without speaking to the club first is wrong – he is under contract.
“Whether he’s unhappy or not it shouldn’t have been made for public consumption the way he has done it.
“He will be reminded of his responsibilities while he is still here. If he wants to go, we will have to sit down and take a view on it.
“I don’t know if it has been prompted by him or someone else. We’ll get to the bottom of it when he comes in.”
Ntcham scored the only goal of the game when Steven Gerrard faced up to his former Liverpool gaffer Brendan Rodgers for the first time at Parkhead in September.
The following month, he agreed a four-year extension on his contract, but, after his recent comments, it looks highly unlikely he will see it through.
