Celtic manager Neil Lennon has revealed that he held talks with Leicester City over potentially becoming their interim manager in a move which would have kept Brendan Rodgers at Parkhead.
The two-time treble winning boss departed the Hoops for the Foxes on Tuesday after the sacking of Claude Puel, with Lennon returning to his former side for a second stint in the dugout.
However it could well have been Lennon, not Rodgers, taking charge of the Premier League side, the Bhoys boss revealing that he held talks with Leicester chief Jon Rudkin about taking an interim role, much like the one he has at the moment.
He told the Scottish Sun: “The whole thing flipped around.
“I spoke briefly to Jon Rudkin [Leicester City’s director of football] and he said he was bearing me in mind if they were thinking of an interim manager.
“But it was only a five minute chat with him and I think that already by that stage they wanted a permanent manager in.”
Opinion
Lennon probably could not believe his luck when Leicester revealed he was in the running to take charge temporarily and while that job might not have transpired, he is still quite fortunate to have got the Celtic position until the end of the season. It seems as though Rodgers could not wait until the summer to get back to the Premier League and that is understandable – the top 20 jobs in English football do not come around too often and even if Leicester did appoint a temporary boss until the summer, there is no guaranteeing he would still be under consideration then. It has angered the fans at Celtic Park but the truth of the matter is there was nothing else for the Northern Irish manager to achieve and the Foxes offer a new challenge. Lennon is a safe bet for the immediate future but the club really should be looking at another top quality boss to fill the void.