NEIL LENNON enjoyed Celtic’s biggest win in five months as the champions overwhelmed Kilmarnock 4-0 at Rugby Park last night.
A lot has happened since the 5-0 victory over Ross County in Dingwall on September 12, but the Hoops boss was satisfied with the response from his players following his tongue-lashing after the dire display in the 2-1 flop against St Mirren.
Led by Scott Brown, with the 35-year-old midfielder putting in a dynamic performance after his two-game ban, Lennon’s side swarmed all over their opponents from the start and deservedly won with strikes from the skipper, Odsonne Edouard, two, one from the penalty spot, and Albian Ajeti, netting only his sixth goal since his £5million summer arrival from West Ham.
Remarkably, it was only Scotland’s title kings’ second success in 2021 as their bid for a tenth championship in a row disappeared in a maze of mistakes.
However, there was a lot to please Lennon on this occasion and, speaking to the Daily Record, he said: “I got the reaction I wanted.
“It was the polar opposite of what we produced on Saturday. People were criticising me for jagging the team, but they needed the jag to be honest and we got a great performance and a great result.
“The body language, their attacking play, the concentration was so much better. That is more like us, so we have to build on that from here on in.”
On-loan Everton right-back Jonjoe Kenny made an impressive start and looked the part in both defensive and offensive roles and rarely wasted a ball going forward.
Lennon added: “It was a very good performance, we played well and it could have been more, so I am delighted.
“Browny looked more like himself. He worked well throughout the 90 minutes.“Odsonne Edouard is a great player and his second goal was a thing of beauty. He was over-doing it a bit first-half, but in the second-half he’s done brilliantly to open up the angle then just wanted to take that extra touch.
“We’ve seen that a lot this season, so that’s something to work on.
“I’m delighted with Stephen Welsh because he’s been steady. He got thrown in at the deep end this season with Rangers and AC Milan. I wouldn’t say he’s struggled, but it’s been difficult for him.
“He’s had a couple of games since then and he’s been very good. I was delighted with his performance and he should be as well. It’s something for him to build on.
“Jonjoe knows the position, good defender, I thought he was very good going forward. He was very calm and looked like he’d been playing with us all season, even though he’d only trained with us for a day.
“I quite like his attitude and his enthusiasm for the game. He’s a gritty little hardy man and I thought he defended his position very well.
“Albian Ajeti’s work ethic hasn’t been great and he hasn’t been in the best condition, but he has got himself there and he played well.”
FOUR-MIDABLE AS EDOUARD LEADS ROMP
