If we were doubt before, we certainly aren’t now. Neil Lennon’s ‘let him settle in’ period is well and truly over following Wednesday night’s poor performance at Tynecastle. Whilst I will be the first to admit that I didn’t want Neil Lennon anywhere near the Celtic job, I was also the first to defend him following Braga, Utrecht, and Rangers. However I feel its time I chalk this poor result down as the manager’s fault. Why? Because Neil Lennon made the exact same mistakes he made against Rangers.
Now don’t get me wrong, the team Neil Lennon picked on Wednesday night should have been more than capable of putting 3 or 4 goals past even a very fired up Hearts side. However, it was the way the team shaped up, their match tactics, everything was wrong. Stokes suffered horrendously on the right against Rangers and did so the same on Wednesday. Didn’t Lennon see the terrific link up play with Stokes and Hooper on Saturday? Why fix it if it simply was not broke? The key mistakes were made before even a ball had been kicked in anger.
What really worried me about Lennon was his substitutions after the Ledley sending off. We had lost arguably our best central player, which surely called for a similar player to replace him in the central area. However Lennon proceeded to take off our right back and our right winger and replace them, meaning we had new wingers but a huge space in the middle of the park. Lennon tried to plug that by moving Maloney in one but that did nothing, Izaguire was having his poorest game in a Celtic jersey trying to kick Templeton never mind trying to take the ball off him. Then McGinn tried his luck on the left in the last 10 minutes and all he found as Samaras getting in his way. Surely if Juarez replaced Samaras, we could’ve went 4-2-2-1 with Ki and Juarez sitting and Maloney and Stokes supporting Hooper?
Well thats probably why I’m not paid to make these decisions.
As much as Celtic were poor on Wednesday night, the referee was just as poor. He made countless wrong decisions, all against Celtic surprise surprise, leading to Celtic being reduced scandalously to 10 men and then to the surprise of everyone (even Craig ‘f the Celtic’ Burley) he denied Celtic a stonewall Penalty when Stevenson mistook the Penalty Area for a Volleyball Court and flicked the ball away from Gary Hooper and Hearts cleared their lines. Surely the linesman seen it? I seen it and I was watching from Dumbarton!
Back to Ledley’s dismissal, what was the difference with his challenge and the challenge Lee McCulloch received a booking for in the Old Firm game? One was made by a player wearing a Celtic top, and the other was made by a player wearing a Rangers top. Celtic should appeal Ledley’s red card, and play him in the next game regardless. Now the penalty, this is as clear a handball as you were ever see. The referee Craig Thomson was quick enough giving a penalty against Rangers for handball when they’re 3-0 up with 10 minutes to go, but wont give a penalty for an even more clear cut handball when Celtic are chasing the game with 20 minutes left? And a mention for Craig Burley’s ‘Hooper’s having a bad night anyway so it would’ve have mattered’ comment. No matter how poorly Hooper was playing, it won’t stop a top class striker pinging one into the back of the net on the volley will it?
Whilst I’m at it, the media have over exaggerated Celtic’s result to save the neck of Rangers, who were utterly embarrassed by second bottom of the league Hibs, THREE NIL….AT HOME!
But don’t worry. Off night for Rangers – Crisis For Celtic
Now those fans screaming Lennon out, take a wee rest people, your work has gone unnoticed, Neil Lennon has done a remarkable job for Celtic in the short time he has had the job, I have never been so confident in my team to perform away from home in years, even before Wednesday I was predicting a comfortable victory for the bhoys. Just one or two mistakes are costing Celtic at the moment, but they are mistakes Lennon, will get them right in future. I don’t agree with the policy of blaming the players for Wednesday, they were obviously told to play to a certain way, which was Lennon’s fault entirely. But that does not mean the Lennon Out brigade have reason to come out. We are not dealing with a ‘well he should know better’ manager, we have a young inexperienced manager who will make mistakes, its better he makes them in November than in March/April.
Although Lennon needs time, Wednesday night will serve as a warning that more poor decisions like that might lead to more concerns.
I am a season ticket holder at paradise, and i go to all the away game’s i am also unemployed and i go, get up off your arse and go and support the hoops. No,you sit there in your house watching on tv and complain you make me sick to be a tim. Ya frigging hun…
Wow, an uber fan. Thank god we don’t meet to many as you sound like a cock.
@jimthetim
I bow to your superior ability to support Celtic
Ive heard the Dalai Lama wants to kneel at your feet because of your super snazzy supporting skills.
I would go and watch the hoops more but funds and travel make it hard to get up there sometimes, so I ponder the question – Are you paying?
“i am also unemployed and i go, get up off your arse and go and support the hoops”
……Oh thats right after the price of your ticket I guess not.
PS. With you being an uber fan and all I imagine you must have a box at the ground.
Does that mean we’re paying?
Aye wellI was gonna walk up to glasgow and then busk my way up london road to the ground and hopefully when I hit the ground I will have enough for a ticket hahaha
agree 100% with this article. well said Brucehillbhoy
Cheers mate!
I agree with you about Lenny but to a certain degree, that’s because i still feel this team has another 3 or 4 years to bed in and then we can build on that team. I keep thinking and comparing them to the Manchester United team when Fergie took over look how long it took him and he nearly lost his job before they won F.A cup now I know its different up here and we shouldn’t make direct comparisons but we have to start rebuilding somewhere and who’s to say an experienced manager would be doing any better Mowbray etc certainly didn’t and its cause of them we’re in the mess now so I think bit more support and not too much expectation and think we’ll be ok
HAIL HAIL LONG LIVE THE REVOLUTION!!!!!!!!!!!!11111111111
Lennon must ditch the 4-2-4. It does not work. Play midfielders in midfield. Ball winners at that too. He was not learned from Tony and is doing the same stupid mistakes.
” …this team has another 3 or 4 years to bed in…”
Unfortunately, life is not like that in Glasgow.
If the league is not won this year, I would think we would be looking for a new manager.
However, I do think we can do it this year (with a bit of investment in January to make sure).
In that case, we build from there – to be credible/competing in Europe would be the objective for me.
He needs at least two seasons, I say that about every manager. That was my mantra last season until Love Street.
We were well beaten at tynecastle, Hearts outfought us and outthought us. Lennons lack of experience has never been more apparent. And lets not keep going down this roasd of refs being out to get us. This is celtic football club, we are better than that. Every time Lennon comes out with that stuff it makes me cringe. For me ledley gave the ref a choice and a decision to make, could have been yello but no complaints from me it was red, a rash stupid challenge on the half way line. We had 90 minutes to win that game, and lennon had 90 minutes to impose his will and tactics on the game and change it. We failed and as a result we lost, lets not start all this conspiracy crap, we got what we desreved, nothing.
Don’t think anyone is saying it was all the refs fault. Lennons failings are being highlighted in this very organ constantly.
No ones blaming the ref it just seemed that once Celtic went behind, the ref did his best to make sure it stayed that way, Celtic didn’t do enough to get back into the game but it seemed the ref wouldn’t let us anyway (i.e the penalty)
Agree that the tactics were a bit off on Wednesday. Jim Jeffries showed the value of having an experienced manager, and the difference between the two sets of tactics told its own story. But we are Celtic. Only the blindest of Celtic fans will deny that we need things to change, but we must do it the Celtic way. If that means having to suffer nights like Wednesday (and 1-3 at home to Rangers for that matter) then so be it.We have a chance to spend a significant time with a man that wants nothing more than to lead Celtic to a sustained period of success.You get the feeling that Neil Lennon will spend the next 10 years building us into a squad that will win the league 7 times out of 10 , and be able to cope with Champions league football.Won’t be seduced with offers from mid-table dross in the Premiership, given the chance. Seems perfectly clear to me , after the Tony Mowbray experience that the only way we are going to be able to stand up and feel even the fraction of the way we felt during the O’Neill era is to give Lennon at least a 5 year crack it. Especially the way football is today,we either give an endless line of untested managers a go at it, or get a high profile name in that will leave the next time they get a decent offer elsewhere.Its either that scenario or we go for Craig Brown. Do you want Craig Brown as our manager? No neither do I. We’ve given Lennon the job for now, and there’s no doubt he’s an improvement on Mowbray. There’s no man on this planet more hungry to get us back to champions league level than Lennon, so for me , that reason alone is enough to give him a 5 year contract and a bit of financial backing.
I’d love to see Hiddink in the job but thats not reality anymore. One thing we cannot doubt is Lennons hunger for the same thing as us – success , so lets stay behind him, as the poster said , let him make his mistakes in November. Cmon the hoops!!!
I was still half asleep when I wrote this lol , but you get the idea 😀
Getting stuffed by shite like hearts, the Huns and getting embarrassed in Europe doesn’t become fun cause you have a Celtic man in charge. Craig Brown? He would choke on his sash.
Agree with every point. The main problem is Lennons Celtic run before they could walk. We will see more stumbles as the toddler finds it’s feet.
We are streets ahead from we were at this point last season. I’m happy, well, as much as a moaning git can be.
His personal problems eventually halted the plan but I was remembering that in the mid 1970s Tommy Docherty had Man U playing old style attacking footy with Steve Coppell and Gordon Hill on the wings. This contrasted with the dominant Liverpool team of the time. That team didn`t reach its potential but it was entertaining. Perhaps too entertaining!
I’m going to sound like a moan but the game is now different. It’s played with athletes not just artists now. The balance in the modern game has to be right. Mind you there was some hard buggers in that period.
Even Saint Martin O’Neill lost a few games, so did THE legend that was Jock Stein.
Strachan was slated even when we were scraping wins, but he won league titles, even if we didnt beat the hunbreds that much.
We are in the points and results game, obviously, Lenny is doing well, both old firm teams have a gulf of space away from the rest of the ‘chaff’ and as long as its close, we beat the diddy teams, lenny gets the confidence up and structure correct we will have more than a chance to be champions once again.
Final thought – It is far from over lads so don’t be too hasty with what you say just yet.
thats what im saying Sean, its only a stumble but every stumble must be noted sadly!
Ten wins from twelve matches is amazing, especially with so many new players. These games where the opposition are getting in our faces and keeping the match close are bound to be the hardest to win.
We are all learning about this team but in a two team league there is little margin for error. The matches won record is as important as the losses when you consider how Lenny has set out the team.
He seems not to have learned how to draw games when we play badly. Once he learns that he’s on a winner.
Chuffed with the responses! thanks lads!