Former team-mates stabbed me in the front!- Neil Lennon’s latest deflection claim

Neil Lennon has hit out at former team-mates who criticised him in the media last season. 

Chris Sutton and John Hartson reluctantly came to the conclusion that a change in management was needed- months after some Celtic fans had been calling for Lennon’s sacking. 

Losing at home to Ferencvaros in a Champions League qualifier was bad enough but after the match the manager claimed that there were players at the club who wanted away. 

Without naming names a number of players came under suspicion, a few days later Lennon tried to reign in his comments but the damage was done. 

By the autumn a disastrous run of four home defeats on the bounce confirmed those fears as the season turned into a complete nightmare. 

With paid for media positions Sutton and Hartson could hardly tell fans that all was well although the club tried that through a managerial review that decided Lennon was the best man for the job. 

Listening in to Lennon’s appearance on PLZ Soccer, The Sun reports: 

On if his relationship with Desmond and Lawwell had changed, he added: “Not at all. It has with some other people, ex-team-mates… But certainly not with those two. I was very close to them and I still am. 

“Yes [they were team-mates critical of me]. I’m far from happy. They were basically stabbing me not in the back, but in the front.” 

Again Lennon has failed to name names or argue against the opinions that he was at the centre of a completely disastrous campaign. 

In March, after a year out of management, Lennon took charge of Omonio Nicosia who have won one of their last four matches, yesterday they drew 0-0 away to Ethnikos Achna.