An alarm call in Paradise?

Reasoned analysis rarely arrives just after the final whistle in a derby defeat.

Moreover, even if it does it is unlikely to have a receptive audience.

As I stated previously, leagues are not won or lost in October.

However, you do not need to be a data analyst anorak to see that zero attempts on goal by Celtic yesterday IS a cause for extreme concern.

The anaemic performance by Neil Lennon’s men yesterday should serve as awake up call in Paradise.

His post-match comments were either reassuringly calm or alarmingly complacent.

Whatever you’re having yourself…

It was after a defeat that the Armagh man probably got the gig permanently in 2010 after a defeat at Hampden to  Ross County.

He tore into his underperforming players and showed that failure hurt him in the dugout as much as it did on the field of play when he wore the Hoops in a successful Celtic team under Martin O’Neil.

The Celtic support was not in unanimously happy when he was given the job on a permanent basis after the cup final victory over Hearts in May last year.

After the failure to Ferencváros at the start of the season this derby defeat has authorised those in the Hoops support who do not want Lennon in the job at all.

My own straw poll last night is that there are now more of that opinion than at the start of play yesterday.

What has to be said is that, in the current financial climate, he has received substantial backing from the board room.

No significant players sold during the extended transfer window and first-team starters signed.

Of course, the Sevco victory has resulted in a happy Herrenvolk and gushing stenographers.

This is to be expected.

Of course, it never a good look to see the fascists of Planet Fitba brimming with expectancy.

No doubt they would have been singing the praises of its chap yesterday.

Lennon now requires his men to hurt as he hurts.

I stated at the start of this season that the only thing that will stop Celtic is Celtic.

Yesterday was a case in point.

Derby matches should be pulsating events.

However, the home team had no sign of a pulse.

There is almost certainly no one reason for the defeat yesterday.

However, in the immediate aftermath, many football supporters resemble a young child in a Piaget buoyancy experiment.

In that, they fixate on one factor to the exclusion of all others.

There are a few variables in play that will determine whether or not the Hoops sink without a trace this season.

Now Celtic could be facing a winter of discontent.

Yesterday the man in the dugout did seem to be cast as the Prince of Denmark.

As with the Ferencváros debacle, his team selection and in-game decisions have been called into question.

Should Celtic stumble in the final step towards Ten In A Row, then the denouement will be Shakespearean.

Next up are the Rossoneri and Aberdeen away.

It could be dramatic.

38 thoughts on “An alarm call in Paradise?”

  1. Does ANYONE know of a team ANYWHERE who sacked their manager during the season and went on to win their national title the same season ???

    Just curious. I personally CAN’T think of ONE !!

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  2. How many alarm calls does Lennon and Celtic need?? Roundly beaten by them in December, very lucky after having been dominated by them in the League Cup final, struggling to beat them when they were down to 10 men with a late late winner in May 19.

    Sadly the die was cast when Dermot and Peter took the cheap option backwards looking appointment. Celtic are a team with no plan and no cohesiveness and now it seems no heart. Sevco for all their faults have these things in abundance and have to acknowledge the job Slippy has done to achieve this.

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  3. Hi Phil
    I am a tremendous admirer of your work
    I am pleased to say that i am the son of a wonderful man from Kilkenny
    And a wonderful woman from Sligo
    Born to these Scottish shores I was fortunate to Marry a brown eyed girl
    From cork
    I have seen all my life what it is to be of Irish descent in this perished land
    But on Saturday for me it was the lowest I have ever felt
    Self inflicted by a manager who if not replaced will make Neroes burning of Rome
    Our own downfall for paradise will burn if the TEN is not delivered
    This was not just a defeat
    This was self inflicted
    By an Ego
    Who should wear the robes of a fallen emperor

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  4. Excellent display of social distancing by Hoops defence. I was embarrassed by the ineptitude of the mega bucks team. Out classed by their poor neighbours.

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  5. Where to begin ?
    Outplayed/outfought/ outthought/ ….not much left to discuss…except…
    Substituting like for like players when the system isn’t working.?…What’s the point in that ?
    Failure to recognise the system isn’t working and make changes….Unacceptable.
    Putting subs on with minutes to go…AGAIN…!!…Absolutely pointless.
    After match comments…Pathetic and patronising.
    I’ve defended Lenny for a long time…but no more as far as I’m concerned.
    We are going backwards…while they go forward.
    Time for big changes…and a request to Lawwell and Desmond…Stop putting money first.
    We claim to be a ” World club” ….start acting like it.

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  6. Big Eddie had the virus bad. He was bed-ridden for the bulk of the two weeks. Griffiths can come on against a tiring team but he is nowhere near ready for 90 minutes yet. Same with Rogic. Ajeti coming back early from an injury is not at 100% either.

    It was better to sacrifice three points on Saturday than risk big Eddie’s long term health.

    Plus the Griffallo and Rogic got more minutes.

    Missing. Eduard, Forrest, Christie, Bitton, Elhamad, Julien, young Mickey – who restarted training – last week.

    Not fully 100% yet. The Griffallo, Rogic, Ajeti.

    McGregor playing in his fourth game in less than nine full days.

    The new left back has never yet even trained with the full squad and young Welsh making his first start.

    Five players having their sevco debut game.

    It was always a huge ask to take anything from that game.

    Win the game in hand and we’re only a point behind. We CAN go on long winning runs. Under SG they have only ever won 5 conservative league games once, and that was after we’d already won the title and they were under no pressure.

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  7. The Celtic support have backed Lennon over and over, we have all backed him even through the most turgid, boring football we have ever watched. Celtic have played with no striker (enough said!).

    Celtic can lose games, we can lose games against Rangers and most fans can except it, we can also except being bored into the land of nod if we keep winning. However, when results stop and there is no effort by the players, the managers head is firmly put on the block.

    Celtic have now been beaten by Rangers x2, Ferencvaros, Cluj and Copenhagen, all easily at home. These games are worth everything to Celtic and Lennon is consistently getting the biggest games of the season wrong, so wrong.

    Lennon’s backing is now over.

    SACK LENNON NOW, get the best manager we can afford in, galvanise the support & win 10 in a row.

    Hail Hail.

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  8. Celtic got too complacent. Said many times Lennon is not a great manager. With his resources my granny could win this league and his initials seem to stand for No Feckin League ( this season ). Lennon will be the reason Celtic fail to win TiaR.
    It was clear he can’t manage when he was with Hibs.
    When manager of the month is handed out, it’s a disgrace managers with huge budgets and top players win it. The award should go to a manager who has little or no resources and battles above their weight. Lennon does not fill this criteria as even with a huge squad he can’t get them up for the biggest game of their season. OK it’s true there is a long way to go, and there is no way Doncaster will call the league with so little between the two, BUT that doesn’t mean the Scottish Government won’t call a halt and whoever is top WILL be declared Champions. In this respect this is a serious blow to Celtic’s ambitions.

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  9. Zero attempts on goal over 90 minutes at home. Lennon arse handed to him for a third time by a rookie manager. And in Duffy we’ve gone from Van Dyke to Van Winkle.

    10 in a row won’t be happening unless we go all in again and sign Stephen Clarke before Christmas 2020.

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  10. Celtic have a game in hand and there will be only 1 point in it so if I was Rangers manager a wouldn’t get carried away, 11 games in a row Celtic av not lost in against Rangers 1 win and all Rangers supporters think they,ll win the league theres no chance o that ,when Rangers won on Saturday it was like they,d won world cup, only Celtic can bet there self this season mentally so I wouldn’t get carried away cos Celtic will still take all the cups on offer this season as they av done for last 9 years ,so Rangers gans dont get carried away

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  11. Several things that I feel need highlighting here as the Anti Lenny Brigada warm up their pitch forks.
    At no point this Season has Lennon had 2 fit Strikers available for selection.
    He lost Forster,Gordon and Šimunović in the window.
    Hayes was punted and Bolingoli did what Bolingoli did.
    The result being we had 1 Left Back left at the Cluband lost out on two games in the middle of the start of the Season,a Season which started off the back of a 4 month shutdown.
    The Board meanwhile spent an age getting reinforcements in.
    In the middle of this and after the two cancellations we faced the Champions of Hungary for a one off game to make the Champions League.
    We faced Ferencváros with only one fit Strikers, a situation that has plagued us in every game so far this Season manning we have been forced to deploy players out of position in order to maintain the System the Manager has built his squad round.
    We dominated Ferencváros had over 70% possession and created 28 chances to score.
    We scored once and got caught on the counter chasing the win.
    it happens at this level in Europe you cannot make such mistakes and be so profligate in front of goal.
    Since then we have had somewhat of a disaster personnel wise.
    First Édouard had issues,then Jullien,then Ajeti,then Forrest and now we entered into a a Derby game against a very solid 2angers team who have only conceded 3 goals in 11 games in the League.
    We did so without Griffiths or Ajeti being fit enough to start and Klimala the only option to start up top.
    Elyounoussi once more playing out of position in the supporting role.
    No Elhamed,Bitton,Édouard or Christie in the squad thanks to Covid 19 meaning yet another shuffle in defence and the introduction of Welsh and Laxalt into the back line which incidentally hasn’t had time to gel all season thanks to the disruptions ALL SEASON so far.
    Gerrard on the other hand went into the game with a full squad,a full bench and a team flying in all competitions.
    Yet the first half although insipid amd nowhere near the blood and guts affairs we usually see finished fairly even if not by the scoreline.
    A defensive disaster on a set piece caused in part by Duffy playing the offside Godson on and Barkas failing to stop the resulting header.
    We had chances at the other end.
    3 of them in fact.
    Elyounoussi denied in the opening minutes by a superb block by Ellander and alter on failing to convert a simple lob ( or square ball to Klimala) and near,y clearing the stand.
    Ntcham also had a good effort goalbound denied by the head of Ellander again.
    Second half we started fairly bright but again got caught by slack defending and Gooldson getting the luck of the bounce after a terrific block by Duffy to poke home his second.
    The best move of the game culminated in a terrific chance for Kent to make it 3-0 but Ajer like Ellander at the other end blocked his shot superbly.
    The changes were made and 2 angers then sat in and defended their lead.
    Like they have done all Season so far.
    Griffiths did have a chance to get one back and had he like Ajeti been match sharp may well have done so.
    Therein lies the issue for Lennon.
    Klimala is nowhere near the level required yet for these types of games,he’s a young boy trying to do a mans job up against a solid defensive unit.
    Elyounoussi for the effort and running he does IS NOT and Édouard,Griffiths or Ajeti.
    This has been Lennons issue all Season so far,he’s simply not had key men available for these tougher games.
    This has hampered his planning and the fact his team sheet and tactics were also leaked has also undermined his approach.
    Had he a full squad to to choose from ,that is a fully fit and functional squad I doubt very much the game would have panned out the way it did.
    The Twitter Steins of course will think otherwise.
    Player not available for selection so far this Season for key games:
    Jullien Elhamed Bitton Christie Forrest Édouard Griffiths Rogic Ajeti
    Most of not all those above would be first picks at Ayebrokes.
    No danger.
    Judge Lenny when he’s got a full deck to play with.
    They have had their best start to a League campaign in years.
    Win the game in hand we are 1 point adrift.
    Calm down ffs.

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  12. In 18 months Celtic have fallen from being treble treble winners to the present mediocre side we now see.Neil Lennon has overseen this transformation.
    If there is any reasonable excuse that absolves Neil Lennon of any blame for this turn of events then I and many others would love to hear it.
    The players are playing well beiow their own standards . Why?

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  13. An alarm call at paradise,should be taxi for Lennon.
    Let’s not kid ourselves Celtic have not performed this season.
    NL no doubt his commitment to Celtic,but its clear the players have lost confidence in him.
    Last season his decisions to play Morgan and Johnson,both lightweights baffled supporters.
    Leaked team nonsense,as Sutton more of less predicted it,so stop making excuses.
    Supporters need to realise that with his team and tactics Celtic will win nothing this season.
    We can’t blame board,as it is clear that Kennedy does not agree with him.
    Gerrard would have walked if Sevco had performed like Celtic.
    Nobody can work out his tactics,so why can we expect the players to work them out.
    Sevco have an inferior squad to Celtic,but it takes a tactician to organise them.
    Lennon must go,or we will finish up watching a team that play football in their own half,and the only goal chances will be against us.Hate to say this,as Lennon is Celtic through and through,but it’s time to go.

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  14. There is no doubt Rangers are resurgent. How they have financed their spending in the last few years is an interesting question. Gerrard does deserve credit for the job he has done at Ibrox though bear in mind no trophy has been won yet.
    Celtic have recruited brilliantly since 2010. They have also sold a lot of top players for great money but at some point that will bite. Ironically this summer Lennon lost no star name. Celtic were short Forrest, Edouard, Jullien and Christie who are four top players.
    An added aspect is the 10 in a row. If Rangers win the league then Gerrard joins Souness and Smith in the Ibrox hall of fame. So it’s a big prize for Gerrard. It probably also guarantees him a Pl job in England. Without winning the league your looking at Championship.
    This years edition of Rangers are looking formidable. Lennon needs to realise this and galvanise his squad to play to their full potential. I believe the Celtic squad is stronger on paper than Rangers. However it’s on the pitch where it matters.
    Lennon could irreversibly tarnish his record at Celtic should Rangers win the league. I sure he knows that better than anyone else. Interesting times ahead.

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  15. The CELTIC powerbrokers will likely back lenny and his anaemic coaches ( ?)…if they care to make anything public but I rekon there will be a pow wow at h.q..tomorrow to either put up or shut up? They must know like the fans the gradual decline since close season saddled with miserable euro efforts culminated with yesterday.s shitstorm ..they need to act now b4 the fat lady chokes

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  16. Thought provoking as always Phil but fell well short yesterday. A number of things wrong as you say but this has been coming so shouldn’t be a surprise to any honest fan. I personally think that our Captain is well past his best but finding a replacement won’t be easy. Saying that, you mentioned the board backing the Manager. This is the same board that were happy to part with £3.5 mill for Klamala but wouldn’t give Brendan £2.5 mill for John McGinn? There may be a number of mistakes over the coming months, but I doubt there will be any to match that one!

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  17. The Alarm bells should have been addressed after the League Cup Final…. Of course we won that day. But only for a goalkeeping display on Voodoo levels.

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  18. I’ve been following Celtic now for the best part of 60 years and in that time have witnessed well over 300 games against them, the old and new editions…..I can honestly say in all that time that I never witnessed such an abject hopeless performance by Celtic players as yesterday. There have been bad days in the past have no doubt- but never an occasion when I felt the majority of the players didn’t give their all.
    Whatever has happened behind the scenes I don’t know but in my honest opinion the majority of this team is not playing for the manager.

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  19. Ntcham chokes the forward play. I have observed this in several games even when Christie etc were playing. He is a defensive midflielder who, on his day can break up the play in midfield like Scott Brown can. I think Scott is slowing down but his influence on the park is valuable. Ajer had to come too far forward as Ntcham was a passenger in the creative hole. Ntcham wants away anyway & I suspect his influence is negative.Welsh did some good stuff but was an observer for a rebound which led to a goal. Shane Duffy needs to sharpen up & not get pickpocketed.Frimpong was afraid to take on players the way he usally waltzes past them in other games. Were rangers players too good for him & now he is found out as mediocre?
    Like I said Ntcham chokes the forward play which left McGregor without the usual opportunity gaps. Klimala works hard but he had to come way too deep for the ball.Elyounoussi also suffered due to choked forward play.
    Laxalt had a decent debut despite not being 100% fit.
    Rangers parked the bus and waited for the counter attack. Barkas is miles behind Fraser Forster.
    Lennon smirked briefly during interview & delivered points while scratching his ear, face & displaying various non verbal cues befitting of someone concealing the truth.
    Was the game rigged to keep rangers alive financially ( by pleasing their money spending fans) & the whole old firm title battle going for consistent revenue for Celtic also ? hmmmm
    The losers were the punters who expect an honest performance.
    Rangers are not Barcelona so why did we have no shots on goal ?
    The stats dont lie but that display could not even be described as a performance. It looked more like a charity game where a fixed outcome had already been decided.
    Glad I gave up my season ticket in 2017.

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  20. Time has shown us that Lennon is far from up tae the job, yesterdays shitshow was always coming, regardless if Eddy or Bitton ect had played, his team selection beggars belief at the best of times, but tae go with Polish Paddy up top on his own against the tramps was unforgivable, Celtic are carrying to many luxury players that we canae afford tae carry, but a weak manager in so many areas is hurting Celtic so much….KTF

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  21. Lennon has used the same tactics against them 3 times with 1 lucky victory thanks to his goalkeeper. I read somewhere that a sign of madness is to keep trying the same failed thing over and over and expecting it to work the next time. Too many bad performances, Lennon will cost us the 10. If he had any integrity he would have resigned after the European Cup debacle never mind yesterday.

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  22. As shocking as the performance was – no fight, at home, against our biggest rivals – “Don’t Panic!”

    Even with NL in charge, we will still see 10IAR.
    It probably won’t be pretty or entertaining, with a few more stumbles along the way, but with the squad we have we should prevail over a long season.

    Whilst NL helped in our hour of need when BR did a runner, PL behaved in an unusually, unprofessional manner – when giving the job permanently to NL.
    PL, (DD), should have searched for the best option as manager – not the convenient / cheap option.

    Next summer we will all see just how ambitious DD and the board are for our club.

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  23. Unlike many I’m a Neil Lennon fan. That said, I’ve been screaming for almost a year – the only thing that will stop Celtic achieving 10 in a row is Lennons misguided belief in playing Ntcham. The game instantly slows to walking pace and most of his passes are backwards. He drains the wage bill – no wonder we can’t off load him. Another disastrous signing by the rat. He’s petrified of tackling, refuses to chase the ball after inevitably passing to the opposition and can’t shoot on goal to save himself. I can accept a defeat but when the team was announced I knew it was damage limitation. Turnbull V Ntcham – no contest..

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  24. It seems we need our “12th man” (the fans) as much as sevco do (the refs).

    Simply not good enough. I took a bit of flak before for saying Ntcham only tries when the transfer window is open…well, I won’t say “I told you so” but…
    Anyway, if we win our game in hand then it’s a one point lead and there’s another 3 games against the scum to go (barring any covid-related curtailing of the season) so hopefully the team can suck it up, learn from it, and get back on track.

    Whether Lenny goes or not something has to be done about the continuous early leaking of team sheets. Get whoever is responsible out the door ASAP.

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  25. I said it a while back, Celtic should have sought out a top class manager and gave him a £1,000,000 plus contract for a year, cheaper than buying poor new players. Celtic have done well up until now because of how bad the opposition were. Anyone who thinks Sevco are not a good organised team now, are kidding themselves.
    When Barkas was mooted as a possible addition, I looked at the “YouTube” video of his skills and determined that he was too slight and couldn’t catch a ball. No command of his area etc. I couldn’t believe it when they paid £5,000,000 for him, a fraction of what a good manager would have cost.
    Perhaps it’s because I am watching re-runs of “Better Call Saul” I have a slightly jaundiced view of the powers-that- be and wondering if someone has placed a packet on Sevco to win the league this year. It is the only conclusion I can come to, to explain some of the decisions they are making.

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  26. Very tough watching that dire showing,it’s still very early,early enough to get most,if not all,of yesterday’s bad traits rectified and get back to full strength and clinical performances.

    Lenny’s brought them back from similar before and I’ve every faith he’ll do so again.KTF🍀

    Thanks Phil🇮🇪

    ps.Like you have a mole in Mordor,we now have one leaking team selections from C.P.
    That IS a concern we could well do without…

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  27. That performance yesterday sent a shiver down my spine. Leave aside the obvious handicap of players missing, Celtic should still have had enough about them to see off Sevco comfortably. It was obvious from the moment the teamsheet was published there were big problems here. Griffith’s and Ajeti benched, an unknown youth at right back. No Turnbull to create from midfield, Elyonoussi up front with Klimala? Add in the lack of tactics/ desire/ pace/ imagination and determination and the recipe for disaster was complete.! Lenny looked a beaten man long before Time up yesterday. Not good enough for Celtic, not good enough at all.

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  28. Phil; there were indeed extenuating circumstances for yesreday in that a number of regulars were not available. However, the key item I think needs examined and answered is why the team played with what appeared to be no passion, urgency or basic plan?

    Losing is not fun but if I feel team gave all then I can deal with that. I only see 2 possibly reasons for yesterday; the tactics/plan wasn’t fully understood by players and it made them unsure and hesitant in their play. OR, the players did not believe in the plan or how it was being delivered to them and they tuned out the manager. Something isn’t right at moment and it better be fixed sharpish!

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  29. Lennon doesn’t learn – how many times must Brown and Ntcham fail as a central midfield partnership? How many times are basic mistakes in defending going to be tolerated? Why is the back line so far back that six attacking players are often left against 10? How long does it to get professional athletes fit? Why isn’t Turnbull playing? You could go on and on. But the really worrying thing is that some of those players did not even bother going through the motions for him. He needs to sort out the middle of the park.

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  30. On one hand Celtic were truly woeful and on the other the club masquerading as inclusive and tolerant were masterful. After match analysis in the Scottish press always amazes, especially if the govan loyal win, they just can’t get enough…. As you said, the only thing that will stop Celtic is Celtic, yet the rags see it as a dominant footballing force turned up at parkhead and swept Celtic aside, then following through with how bad Celtic were, contradiction in terms not to be mentioned. I do not enjoy watching Celtic getting it tight from anyone, but when they deserve it then, hell slap it into them, but those who do should be aware of what the implications of this defeat may result in, especially if DD has felt humbled.

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  31. In just over one year we’ve had 5 massive home games and lost the lot. If you believe our players are good enough and that financial superiority gives you an advantage then the only conclusion left is that NL is not good enough.

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  32. Neil says it’s “disappointing”, No Neil it’s ALARMING, no shots on goal at home is embarrassing. Hope you drop the players who didn’t look interested.

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  33. I honestly feel Lennon’s time is up, along with Kennedy and Strachan. They are devoid of ideas and now Slippy G and MacCallister have his number regards how we play. Yes we were short of first team selections but it was our set up that was all wrong. Everyone except Lennon and our coaches could see Klimala and Elyanousi was not working. I think since Damien Duff left the club we have regressed badly.

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