There is no love lost between Neil Lennon and Charlie Nicholas and with the current situation going down at Celtic Park, it appears as if Charlie is revelling in Neil Lennon’s failures.
During an incredible diatribe the former Celtic player and Sky pundit got in dig after dig at the Celtic manager.
Nicholas claimed Neil has never earned the top job at Celtic and has been given it out of convenience twice. The first one because he happened to be a coach for the reserves when Mowbray was sacked and the second time he was available when Rodgers walked away.
Nicholas details how the Neil is such a yes man he was just delighted to get the job again and accepted he couldn’t pick his backroom team or even have much of a say in player recruitment.
Speaking about his credentials on the training filed, Charlie calls the Celtic manager old school, learning under the Martin O’Neill tree who left his coaches to train the players and get on with things.
Speaking about the board, Nicholas claimed the cheap options has been used far too much at the club. Brendan Rodgers broke that notion but as soon as he left, they reverted to type.
Here is his full, scathing report on Neil Lennon as cited by RecordSport.
“Neil is a lucky, lucky boy to have had the privilege to manage Celtic on two occasions.
“On the first occasion, he didn’t earn it. He got it on the back of Tony Mowbray being sacked.
“Mowbray had been made promises by the Celtic board, who are also under scrutiny now, and they reneged on them.
“That board didn’t deliver and then turned to Lenny, ironically after a Ross County defeat.
“He did a fine job and he got them off and running towards nine-in-a-row but it was never the most taxing job in the world.
“Also, when Neil came back, he didn’t earn the right to become Celtic manager.
“Neil is an old-fashioned manager and a Martin O’Neill-type, who will let his coaches get on with things. The problem that has been growing for me – and I have said it before – is the cheapness and the way Celtic go about things.
“That board didn’t deliver and then turned to Lenny, ironically after a Ross County defeat.
“He did a fine job and he got them off and running towards nine-in-a-row but it was never the most taxing job in the world.
“Also, when Neil came back, he didn’t earn the right to become Celtic manager.
“Neil is an old-fashioned manager and a Martin O’Neill-type, who will let his coaches get on with things. The problem that has been growing for me – and I have said it before – is the cheapness and the way Celtic go about things.
“It seems to be more relevant to the board and the controllers because they take in people like Nicky Hammond.
“Nicky is simply a glorified shopper for Peter Lawwell. He submits a list of players and Peter tells him which of those they can afford.
“Then they go to the manager but even then they don’t always get what they want.
“I go back to Mowbray who wanted to make his own choices but the board wouldn’t let him.
“I would then say that, for all the board were cheapskates for the appointment of Ronny Deila, the one thing they did was turn the corner, paying big money for Brendan Rodgers.
“Then when Brendan decided to go to Leicester Celtic were in a position .
“Lennon was conveniently available to come back in.
“The problem for him was that he wasn’t in a position of strength when he was offered the position.
The Celtic board knew he would be desperate for the job and wouldn’t debate things too much. It was the easy option.
“He would accept Hammond being foisted upon him in the same way that John Kennedy and Gavin Strachan were.
“He also accepted the transfers when I said a good few weeks ago that they were the wrong players for his system.
“What I said was correct. I know I won’t get an apology for that, but he had been picking the wrong formation for the best part of a year.”
“I have very little sympathy for Neil because he has caused his own problems, his own weakness at Celtic has now left them in this untenable position.”
