Former Celtic star Charlie Nicholas has predicted that Neil Lennon and club chief Peter Lawwell will butt heads over the transfer policy at Parkhead if the manager signs on as the Hoops’ permanent boss.
The Northern Irishman was confirmed to have been offered the full time position in Glasgow after helping them to a third consecutive treble as caretaker manager, returning to Celtic Park to take the place of Leicester City bound Brendan Rodgers.
Nicholas has insisted that Lennon will not be a pushover when it comes to the tough decisions and insists that he and Lawwell will fiercely contest things behind the scenes.
He told Sky Sports: “Don’t be fooled, a lot of people think that he’s just gonna be accepted as a ‘glove-puppet’ manager and he won’t fight Peter Lawwell for his budget – he will.
“He has to get the right signings in because Rangers will get stronger again, so Celtic have to strengthen and there’s quite a bit of rebuilding to do.
“I think Neil Lennon will sign the contract for Celtic but he has to push his voice behind the signings that he wants and not the ‘bean-counters.”
Opinion
There will be many out there thinking Lennon’s proposed appointment is simply because he is the easy option and that is something both manager and club will have to prove wrong. On paper, it looks like a low risk decision, Lennon obviously having a great history at Parkhead and his success this season means he was always going to be in the running. However, could the Hoops have been a little bit more ambitious? Perhaps, and that might be why some are concerned he is only being offered the job because it suits Lawwell’s agenda. It is up to Lennon to ensure that the club move forward with him at the helm and that might mean some tough conversations with those at the top of the Bhoys’ tree. Failure to progress on the European stage will make it look as though Celtic have chosen to take the easy exit rather than rolling the dice on someone who could bring new ideas to Glasgow.