Kris Boyd has claimed that Neil Lennon is looking less likely to earn the full-time manager’s position at Celtic Park.
Lennon has been in interim charge of the Bhoys since Brendan Rodgers left Parkhead to join Leicester in February, but there has not been any real indication of the Scottish Premiership leaders going after any other manager to fill the vacancy past the end of this season.
Former Rangers striker Boyd has suggested that with each passing day, Lennon’s chances of winning the role on a permanent basis are dying and he has urged the Celtic board to offer some clarity on the situation.
“The longer it goes on and on and on, the less likely that Neil Lennon’s going to get the job,” said Boyd on Sky Sports Football after Celtic’s draw with Hibernian on Sunday [02:40pm].
“Time’s starting to eat away, and the big thing for me here is that Celtic have got an opportunity, with the finances they’ve got, to get players in, speak to players early. The longer it goes on, it then goes back into the teams that Celtic might be looking to buy players off.
He added: “There are a lot of people upstairs at Celtic who really need to come out and say ‘right, if it’s not Neil, we’re looking for this one, we’re looking for that one’.”
OPINION
As much as Celtic fans might hate to admit it, Boyd has got a good point here. Lennon might already know that he isn’t going to get the job past the end of this season but that information has not been made public yet. It remains to be seen what Peter Lawwell wants in the next manager because there haven’t really been any reports to suggest he is in talks with any other candidates. Marco Rose was a popular choice among a lot of supporters, but they have missed out on him now. Are they going to miss out on any other candidates before the end of the season? If they leave it late, that is a risk that the Hoops will be running. Other managers will become available when seasons across Europe end so that could also be something else on the mind of Lawwell. If all else fails, is Lennon going to be a last resort? It seems like it might be that way if they fail to hire anyone else.