WHEN Brendan Rodgers left in February 2019, the Irishman took several coaches with him – Glen Driscoll, Chris Davies and Kolo Toure. The void that was left in the dugout was filled by Neil Lennon as interim manager, John Kennedy who was promoted to Assistant from First Team Coach and then Damien Duff was brought into the first team fold.
Fast forward to August this year after the management trio succeeded in securing the Treble Treble and 9IAR, Duff decided the distance was too much and he had to go back to Ireland, where his family were.
Peterborough’s Assistant Gavin Strachan joined the team as first team coach but still Celtic look like they are lacking ideas.
Rodgers was a perfectionist, he surrounded himself with good coaches that he trusted to implement what he wanted to do with a team. Lennon is the same but he was unable to bring his trusted advisor Garry Parker back to the club when he was appointed, instead given Kennedy and Duff.
As I write, Celtic are six points behind Rangers (three if we win the game in hand) but could potentially fall nine behind next week when Rangers go to Rugby Park.
The season has a long way to go and this last week is not at crisis level yet but the club will be alarmed at the fact eight goals have been conceded in three games through some really abject defending.
Something needs to be done to arrest the decline in standards on the park and some feel the manager is to blame. There is more work to be done on the training ground to bring the club back to the levels that Rodgers demanded from his players, something which Lennon is a bit more relaxed with, coming from an old school, ex-pro’s position.
Someone is needed to join in the backroom staff and give the team a lift and a new coach could do that – one with credentials. Roy Keane would certainly raise the standards and demands of the team but it is unlikely that he would leave a cushty role as a Sky Sports pundit.
Someone of Duff’s calibre is needed, a winner with desire to play positive attacking football. Maybe even a message to the Irishman to see if he fancies a secondment back across the Irish Sea to Glasgow.
There are a lot of coaches out of work in football, especially those with impressive enough CVs. Celtic need to try and help Lennon instead of leaving him under the weight of the supporters’ dismay.
10IAR is not dead in the water yet but we need to help give the manager the best possible chance of achieving it and recruiting another coach could have the potential to pay dividends.
