Neil Lennon took charge for a second time at Celtic following the departure of Brendan Rodgers to Leicester in February 2019; in his two spells as manager, Lennon won five league titles, four Scottish Cups and one League Cup
Wednesday 24 February 2021 19:48, UK
Following Neil Lennon's resignation as Celtic boss, we look at what now awaits the next manager in charge at Parkhead...
Lennon, who returned to manage Celtic for a second time after Brendan Rodgers moved to Leicester in February 2019, has been under mounting pressure with runaway leaders Rangers all but ending dreams of 10 consecutive league titles.
All of which means that whoever takes over from Lennon in the East End of Glasgow will have to tackle a giant rebuilding job. But what issues are sure to be at the top of their in-tray?
Kris Boyd on the Sky Sports Scottish Football podcast:
Looking at Celtic's squad right now, we all know the financial muscle they have, but I don't think any of the goalkeepers are up to it.
And then looking at the backline, there are so many players there that will probably move on.
For a number of years, they could build the team around certain individuals; as it stands, I'm probably only seeing David Turnbull as a guarantee to be at Celtic long-term. Nobody thought Kieran Tierney would move on, but people like Callum McGregor might say 'you know what, I've done all I'm going to do in Scottish football, I want to go and test myself in England against the best' - maybe Ryan Christie as well.
Scott Brown is not getting any younger. When you look at all of those players, they are the ones you want to build a team around and you can bring in another five or six. Now though, Celtic are going to need 10 plus players.
When you look at the whole process and structure of what's going on at Celtic - when you see the money that has been wasted on transfers already - and then you say, "go and recruit 10 or 12 players", I don't think I would trust anybody to go and spend the money. I think Celtic are in a very difficult situation right now. It's all well and good having money, but they've spent it on players that have not, so far, shown that they are up to it.
Andy Walker on the Sky Sports Scottish Football podcast:
Whatever you think about Celtic, a lot of people will realise that this is the end of an era. The quadruple treble and the astonishing Invincible season, they are now just great memories. So, you have to think, what do you do now? This team will break up and that's going to be an astonishing job to rebuild.
I don't know who will be doing the rebuilding and right now, I don't think anyone knows what sort of finances will be involved in the game. The big problem now that Celtic will realise is you are asking supporters to buy into something that's broken for next season. They are looking at players who might not be there. The loan players, for example, like Diego Laxalt and Shane Duffy. The reality of the harsh financial landscape will kick in - how will that affect others?
Maybe that means players that Celtic don't want to lose will then be open to offers, just to get money in. Celtic are like any other club; they are being affected financially. So it's going to be a long number of months before the end of the season. I think you always have to regard a change as an opportunity, but I don't know who it will fall for.
Kris Boyd on the Sky Sports Scottish Football podcast:
Would anybody want the job right now? We know what it's like in Glasgow, people are pretty quick to make up their minds.
It's a great opportunity for someone to come in and build their own squad, and when you go into a club as a new manager sometimes you get that bounce, but if you don't get it out of a bunch of serial winners that are coming to the end, you are under pressure right away from the fans who will be questioning his ability.
The inconsistent form of Celtic's players undermined Neil Lennon. He would have watched these players on the training ground and thought they were still at the level they used to be at, but on the pitch, something has been missing. Something is not quite working, and that needs to be addressed.
Andy Walker on the Sky Sports Scottish Football podcast:
In the immediate sense, Celtic need to get back to winning ways, to playing the football they are capable of. They need to try and get a victory or two over Rangers, just to show they can compete. They did it for 45 minutes in the last game at Ibrox, where they played some good football. Those are the targets, they need to try and show the fans that while they haven't been able to compete with Rangers over the course of the season, but a couple of victories would give them hope for the coming season.
