The Full Scottish with Brian P. Dunleavy
Surely you’ve heard the old saying, “You can please some of the people all of the time… but you can’t… please all the people all of the time.”
Well, first, we know, “don’t call you Shirley,” and, second, the phrase, though made famous by Abraham Lincoln, was actually authored by the English poet John Lydgate in the 15th century. It has remained relevant, of course, because it is largely true, as evidenced by events in Glasgow this week.
For those of you who obstinately refuse to follow Scottish football—or who, let’s face it, have more important things to do—Celtic clinched its third consecutive domestic treble (league, League Cup and Scottish Cup) on Saturday with a dramatic 2-1 victory over Hearts of Midlothian at Hampden Park. The corks on the celebratory bottles of champagne had only just been popped when the club announced that Neil Lennon, caretaker manager since Brendan Rodgers abruptly departed for Leicester City in February, was offered the job full-time, with a three-year contract.
Although the vast majority of Hoops supporters appreciate Lennon for all he has done as a player, coach and manager (from 2010 to 2014) in the past, there has been not surprisingly a pretty vocal segment that had hoped for a more imaginative hire. Names such as Jose Mourinho and Rafa Benitez had been bandied about. The former had even, reportedly, been offered the job.
But really, the post had always been Lennon’s to lose, from the moment he rode in on his white horse following Rodger’s exit (on his black one). Once the Irishman finished the job started by the other Irishman—securing the league and the Scottish Cup—the matter was a mere formality.
When BBC cameras captured Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell, chairman Ian Bankier and majority shareholder Dermot Desmond chatting in the aftermath of Saturday’s victory, we had an idea what they were talking about. Lennon was reportedly offered the full-time gig as he toweled off from his post-match shower.
Here’s why we weren’t surprised and why, despite the objections of the aforementioned vocal minority, we think it will all work out in the end:
1. Lennon is not Rodgers. The two men share an ethnic identity and a lifelong love of Celtic, but not much else. Rodgers has an EPL pedigree, having started his coaching/management career at Chelsea after his playing days were ended prematurely due to injury. He was and is accustomed to EPL wages, infrastructure and attention. Celtic are the big fish in the small Scottish pond, but Rodgers reportedly stretched the club’s coffers on salary, backroom staff and office renovations. Interestingly, the Scottish press only hinted at Rodgers’ being “high maintenance” after he left, but Lennon is both familiar and comfortable with the working conditions.
2. Lennon and Lawwell work well together. The Rodgers/Lawwell partnership clearly soured last summer when the former wasn’t able to add the player(s) he wanted—including new Aston Villa hero John McGinn—in the transfer market. Conversely, Lennon and the Celtic chief executive clearly have an excellent relationship—that is, if that all-smiles-and-hugs “behind the scenes” footage on Celtic TV is to be believed.
3. Less money for the manager and more money for players. Rodgers was/is the highest-paid manager in Celtic’s history. Lennon will likely take what we in the US call a “hometown discount,” at least in comparison. That should give the club more money to spend on a much-needed squad refresher—and spend they better, if “10 in a row” remains the ambition.
4. Lennon has “an eye for a player.” Or so says Lawwell, probably providing evidence to point No. 2. Rodgers is clearly a great man-manager, having taken a largely unchanged squad to new heights upon his arrival in 2016. But while he signed Scott Sinclair, Moussa Dembele and Odsonne Edouard, Rodgers’ ability to bargain shop—a necessity in Scotland—was clearly lacking, hence the cheers when his handpicked chief scout Lee Congerton left to join him at Leicester. Lennon signed the likes of Victor Wanyama, Ki Sung-yueng, Virgil van Dijk, Kris Commons, Joe Ledley and Leigh Griffiths during his first tenure. Not all his doing, of course, but still impressive.
There are other arguments in Lennon’s favor, of course. He has a better European record at Celtic than Rodgers, highlighted by that victory over Barcelona at Parkhead in 2012, and he’s not likely to get his head turned by just any old offer from a club south of the border.
However, we also know that these and other facts are unlikely to appease the naysayers. Still, Lennon’s the man, like it or not. We’ll see if he’s the right man in a year’s time.
