ESPN pundit Craig Burley has urged Celtic to hire Rafa Benitez as their next permanent manager.
Neil Lennon has been in interim charge of the Bhoys since Brendan Rodgers quit for Leicester in February but it is not yet clear whether or not the Northern Irishman will bag himself the permanent job once the season is over.
Benitez is approaching the end of his £115,000-a-week [Chronicle] deal at St James’ Park and has been linked with the job at Celtic Park by the bookmakers.
Ex-Celtic player Burley believes that the Spaniard is the man who the Hoops should be turning their attention to amid uncertainty surrounding his future at Newcastle.
“I just think if Celtic want to make a statement, they have to go after somebody like a Benitez or somebody with a bit of ilk who has got a CV,” Burley told talkSPORT on the Jim White Show on Monday [11:50am].
“He’s a Champions League winner, he won the league in Spain when he was managing there. We’re talking top drawer managers.
“The fact that Benitez is doing what he’s doing at Newcastle is pretty amazing I think, particularly the second half of the season.
“But I just wonder if Celtic’s ambitions are that – that’s the thing. And if their ambitions are not that, then it would be give Neil the job because Neil would want the job and they could probably get away with not giving him much money at all.
“But if you bring a big-time manager in like Benitez, you’re going to have to give the guy money or it’s a waste of time.”
OPINION
Benitez would be an amazing appointment by Celtic but the chances of them being able to match his wages at Newcastle and convince him to head to the Scottish Premiership are zero to none. Benitez has been widely-reported to be in talks about a new deal at St James’ Park and even if he does not agree terms with the Magpies then he is bound to either stay in the Premier League or head to one of the top leagues in Europe. Celtic just cannot match these kinds of teams financially and Benitez will want to manage a team that is in a league far better than the Scottish Premiership. Celtic fans will argue that he could win 10 in a row at Parkhead and improve the team in Europe, but 10 in a row is something that only really matters to those already in Scotland and those associated with the Bhoys. Benitez won’t care about that. There’s no way that he will be hired by the Hoops if he leaves Newcastle.