CELTIC are on course for another historic treble, and in terms of how the trophy cabinet is on course to be stocked at the end of the season, everything is rosy. But there is no doubt there are growing murmurings of discontent among the supporters.
The goalless draw against Hibs would be fine in isolation, but coming as it did in the midst of a period of uninspiring football outwith the Scottish Cup semi-final win over Aberdeen, there are supporters who are quite clearly unhappy about the football Celtic are playing at the minute.
I have said it before that this was also the case under Brendan Rodgers for large spells this season, and particularly so in the month or two before he headed south, but as much of a fan as I am of Neil Lennon as a manager, and as much as his overall record is good on paper, if you scratch the surface a little it doesn’t make for quite as good reading.
Yes, Neil’s priority was to get Celtic to the Scottish Cup final and to get us over the line in terms of an eighth league title in a row. He has achieved the first of those tasks in fine style, but the laboured fashion by which Celtic are going about clinching the league championship hasn’t been great to watch.
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There have now been three goalless draws in Celtic’s last six games, and even some of the wins haven’t been too easy on the eye. Late goals were needed at Hearts, against 10-man Rangers, and in a dismal game up in Dundee too.
In saying all of that, I fully expect Celtic to clinch the title sooner rather than later, but they mustn’t allow complacency to creep in. I’ve been part of a Celtic side that lost a league title we thought we had sewn up, and while I don’t expect that to happen, the end of the season is becoming a little bit of an anti-climax.
The prevailing thought has been that if Neil clinches yet another treble, which would be a magnificent achievement by the way, then the job would be his. And I think that is right. But I just worry the perception of this Celtic team under his guidance is turning a little bit negative.
A major reason for that is that there is no clarity about the future of the man in the dugout, and that goes for a great deal of the playing squad too.
Make no mistake, I think there is a big rebuilding job to do at Celtic this summer, with an injection of fresh blood sorely needed.
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There are many players who will move on, the likes of Dedryck Boyata, Jeremy Toljan, Filip Benkovic, Timothy Weah, Oliver Burke could all be away along with a few others, so it would be better for Celtic to have some clarity about who is going to be doing that job.
It all reminds me a bit of last summer, when the Celtic support were sitting back and waiting for big names to arrive at the club and then none materialised. That uncertainty around the club, and how Brendan Rodgers was unhappy with the board, seeped its way into the players and onto the pitch.
I think the limbo the club is currently in is seeping onto the pitch again, and that is why we are seeing more and more of these laboured performances.
I still fully expect Celtic to deliver that treble Treble, but while that should be a historic occasion worthy of massive celebration, the longer this uncertainty clouds the club, the more I fear it will be greeted with a whimper rather than the bang it deserves.
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