Neil Lennon might look to 'older head' if handed Celtic job

NEIL Lennon last night admitted he would need an "older head" around him if he is appointed manager of Celtic.

• Neil Lennon arrives at last night's question and answer session with fans at Celtic Park. Picture: SNS

The Northern Irishman was speaking at a gathering of around 500 fans in Parkhead's Kerrydale Suite. But club chief executive Peter Lawwell resisted calls from the floor to make him Celtic manager right away. Lawwell said: "We are going through a selection process which Neil is fully involved in.

"If we gave Neil Lennon the job after the Hearts game because we liked him, that would have been the wrong thing to do. But if he gets the job, it is because he is the best man for it. However, it is taking a bit longer than we thought. Bear with us. We should see something in the next week or two."

One supporter pointed out Lennon's lack of managerial experience and asked if he would seek counsel of an "older head" to guide him in the job.

Lennon said: "If I do get the job, maybe I would like an older head to bounce ideas off. It is a possibility if the outcome is positive."

The meeting was the first in a series of "roadshows" where Lennon and Lawwell will face thousands of supporters in Scotland, England and Ireland.

Convened by the Celtic Trust, the meeting was impassioned but never rowdy.

Leading Celtic Trust figure Eddie Toner received raucous approval from the floor for his passionate call for Lennon to be confirmed immediately.

He told Lawwell: "The empty seats at Parkhead are alarming. I think you will have a very hard job selling season tickets. I can't put my faith in John Reid, Dermot Desmond or you.

"But if the club was to come out and appoint Neil Lennon tomorrow, he will be cheered down London Road."

Lawwell said he takes his "share of responsibility" for the failure of the Tony Mowbray era. "We brought Tony in for exciting, expansive football. For whatever reason, it didn't work." He added that Celtic had lost the SPL title "to a team that is financially crippled".