Neil Lennon believes that media pressure led to the charge of ‘not acting in the best interests of Association Football’ being laid on Scott Brown.
The Celtic skipper was elbowed and punched during Sunday’s derby day clash then confronted by half a dozen opponents after the final whistle.
Since Sunday’s match Brown has been the centre of attention while the punch thrown by Ryan Kent has been watered down by various media outlets.
?????WATCH: #CelticFC boss Neil Lennon brands Scott Brown charge ‘massive deflection’ and claims it was #RangersFC who didn’t behave pic.twitter.com/GzEl9gj8yp
— PLZ Soccer (@PLZSoccer) April 5, 2019
Neil Lennon ahead of #CelticFC v #Livingston
The club will defend Scott Brown because he has done nothing wrong
The noise about Scott Brown this week is a massive deflection
We behaved superbly and the opposition players did not
It’s made up charge because of media pressure
— PLZ Soccer (@PLZSoccer) April 5, 2019
A Celtic spokesman promised to defend Brown vigorously against the charge with Lennon taking that further at today’s media conference.
Much of what he had to say had been revealed during a Celtic TV interview released this morning.
The exact nature and terms of the charge are unknown with Sky Sports and BBC Scotland unable to come up with any video coverage of any actions or gestures from Brown.
The Celtic skipper will be available for tomorrow’s match against Livingston.