Neil Lennon’s patience with his players finally snapped after the 3-2 defeat at Ross County.
All season long the hoops boss has defended his players after domestic set-backs by highlighting their exertions in Europe.
Watching a 2-0 lead squandered in the highlands shocked the Celtic boss who questioned the desire and attitude of his players after the match.
“These players owe me,” Lennon stated. “I have pulled them out of places that no-one had heard of and put them in the shop window and I want payback now. That is simply not good enough.
“If they want to go they only have to knock on my door and say ‘I want to go’ then I will leave them out and play someone else who wants to be here.
“We have lost the last two away games to really poor performances in some aspects of the game. I’m not happy with the attitude of some of the players. Some of them look like their minds are elsewhere at other clubs.
“I don’t know if they have been tapped up, I don’t know where they are mentally, but you can tell by their body language they are not with us at the minute and I’ll have to sort that out.”
Lennon added: “We should have been four up at half-time. We missed two simple chances and then they get a huge slice of luck when the keeper saves one and it hits the guy and comes off the bar.
“I can’t legislate for the first goal, it was a great touch and finish. Sometimes you have to hold your hands up and say ‘well done’ but the second and third goals were comical from our point of view.
“And we lacked character second half. I don’t know if there was a bit of fatigue and lethargy there but we looked ragged at the back. Going forward we were okay. Just okay.”
Players should be in this morning doing a 20k run up in The Campsies
Agree. Some of the performances from our ‘head turned stars’ of late have been embarrassing to say the least. Let them have their day in the sun at Norwich, Stoke and Sunderland.. ship them on and build again. We need players who will spill blood for the hoops. Forster, Hooper, Ambrose, Kayal and dare I say big Vic. Thank you very much, but you guys are no where what we demand at our club. Others may not be as gifted as you, but they know what it means to play for Celtic.
How much will that lot bring in? 30 mill? Park and Lennon do your stuff.
By the way, for those who talk of Lenny not taking the blame for a bad performance, please tell me a successful manager who does?
mattybhoy i hear what you are saying but its just excuse after excuse from NL he picks the team sets out the formation etc we were never expected to beat Barca or Moscow but we are surly expected to beat Ross co ,I like NL as a guy and supporter of our club ,as a Manager I,m just not sure and I know alot of people will give me a hard time for that but really the points dropped in the league this season is shocking ,I feel for the fans traveling to Dingwall to watch that crap
K wilson IMO has pace,strengh and put in some excellent performances in europe and is the best CB we have at the club
Dortmund spent 16 million on Marco reus in the summer and 11 million on two players the summer before that yet you compare them to us,thats 27 million on 3 players don’t know for sure but with that kind of spending capacity it might contribute to how well they are doing this year as opposed to just looking at the age of their team
So it was the fans mostly who beat Barca,not a good formation and game plan carried out effeiciently on the night,no credit for Lenny having faith to put young Watt into such a big game and it paying off
You can’t post on a Celtic site and compare Lenny and McCoist as much the same and expect no to get pelters for it
BTW where you a scout at CP and Lenny gave you your P45 is that what this is sour grapes ha
Lennon is picking players who are now only interested in moving, he doesnt drop them incase if effects their transfer value. If the players don’t have the correct attitude , it’s Lennons job not to pick them! don’t hear him blaming himself.
Are you Williebhoy in disguise?
We’ve got good healthy debate in here among fellow Celtic fans.
A careful hi-tech filter ensures that no outsiders add their poison and bile.
Keep the healthy debate up, like Lenny we all share the same goals.
Think you could get the next Kevin bridges out of this, the comedy’s flowing
GROW UP AND CUT OUT THE SARCASM,YOU ARE NOT AN AUTHORITY ON ALL THINGS CELTIC,DAVIE.YOU ARE BEING ABUSIVE NOW JUST FOR THE SAKE OF IT.
“I don’t know if they have been tapped up, I don’t know where they are mentally, but you can tell by their body language they are not with us at the minute and I’ll have to sort that out.”
Read the last part bhoys i would say that IS taking some responsibility!
DavieBhoy look beyond the obvious and tell me what sort of Budget that sides like Braga, Utrecht had to spend when they outclassed us. Lennon has a bigger budget that ANY club in Scotland yet we get outfought / outworked by the likes of Hibs / St Mirren / Kilmarnock / ICT / Ross County et al ??
A GOOD manager gets the max from his limited resources. Limassol got further in CL football last season than we did..Topped a group with Zenit, Shaktar.
Your comments about Lennon taking responsibility is self-defeating. Clearly Lennon is laying the blame entirely on the players !! How can he only tell by their body language once they are on the park, not in training, not in the dressing room, not in the warm-up, not when we are 2-0 ahead !!
Nope I wasn’t at Celtic, nor Rangers so no axe to grind….but I did speak about such as Cadette 3 years before he signed and Nakamura who we spotted by accident.
Beating Barcelona using the same methods that Inter Milan & Chelsea had used 2 years previously. A blind man can see they are very weak at cross balls / corners. We also beat AC Milan who unlike Barcelona were holders which is a bigger feat surely. At home we are a match for ANYONE, thanks mainly to the support.
I can compare who I like, instead of giving pelters try using FACTS. There are plenty of managers who are doing better with less than Lennon. Like it or not, the SPL currently is a ONE horse race and counts for little. Moscow away good result, but they did have the worst ever home record in CL football. We were poor in both games v Benfica…CL Qualifier, We were opened us up with such ease, simple punts over the top, could have been 4 or 5 down and lo and behold we still lose similar v Ross County. It would put a pub team to shame…no organization, no communication. Forster SHOULD be bawling out the poor mistakes made but says hee haw. Mjallby is supposed to be defensive coach with Lennon overseeing things….not much improvement for me.