Last night, the latest “leaked team” went viral. It has Edouard starting up front on his own and Lennon going with a five man midfield without any natural width in the team.
It’s a terrifying line-up because it is all too easy to imagine Lennon doing something exactly like that.
It’s also easy to imagine someone inside the environs of Parkhead sending it to a mate with a “what do you make of this then?”
The sad thing is, I won’t be surprised.
This is a crucial decision for the manager.
Above all else, he has to get it right. I understand that he’s lost Jullien to injury, which removes the possibility of playing Ajer at right back, and for that reason alone he might want to better protect the right flank (the real danger is down our left as everyone knows full well) … but he simply has to stick to the system which has won us the last few fixtures.
Lennon must not tinker with it. He must not ditch it.
And above all else, he absolutely must not give this Ibrox club the best belated Christmas present he can by going with one up front.
It would be every kind of stupid there is and virtually assure us of a long, frustrating afternoon at best.
Is it risky going two up top? How can it be?
If you believe this Ibrox side deserves all the hype it’s getting for beating teams who play defensively every week and put everyone behind the ball then sure it’s risky. But I would wager that doing what almost every other team has already done – and failed at, including us by the way – is even more dangerous.
Two up front projects confidence and strength.
It gives their defenders more than they’ve had to handle this whole campaign.
It gives the Celtic fans a lift.
It means we’ll be right in their faces. Anything else is going to come over as gutless and self-defeating.
We’ll know soon enough.
I dread to think of what horrors Lennon is capable of in this team selection.
I pray that we’re happy with it, that he goes with what’s been working.
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