Celtic chief Peter Lawwell has revealed the club have been preparing for the summer transfer window since Neil Lennon’s arrival back in February with planning and enquiries over new signings.
The Hoops confirmed on Friday (31/05) that Lennon has been appointed the Bhoys’ permanent manager on a 12-month rolling contract, having taken charge in a caretaker capacity following Brendan Rodgers’ departure for Leicester City.
Speaking of the summer, Lawwell revealed that the club have already got the ball rolling and know what they want in the transfer window after months of preparation.
Speaking at Neil Lennon’s press conference, as videoed by the BBC, he said: “We realised that the squad needs freshening and probably needs strengthened. We’ve actually been working on it since February in terms of options and making enquiries about players.
“We’ve been planning ahead for that period of time as well. We know the direction we want to go in and particular positions.”
Opinion
It seems as though Lawwell always had an idea that Lennon would be the club’s permanent manager and that they prepared accordingly during his first months back at Parkhead. Only the Celtic board know what would have happened and the effect it would have had on transfers had Lennon had chosen not to take the job on but that is obviously not something the Hoops chiefs need to concern themselves with. Now Lennon is the permanent boss, it is time to focus all their attention on making sure they act swiftly in the transfer window and get the players they need in early. They have Champions League qualifiers just around the corner and failure to recruit well could leave the Hoops facing another campaign in the Europa League – or worse, with no European football at all. Who they have got on their radar remains to be seen but they will have a good idea of who is available after making enquiries over the last couple of months.