NEIL LENNON hailed his team’s ‘Perfect’ performance in Paradise yesterday as the 8IAR Champions hit St Johnstone with a devastating green and white wave of attacking football that they simply had no answer to. And The Celtic manager singled out hat-trick hero and Man of the Match Ryan Christie who he described as being ‘fantastic’ – and no-one there yesterday would argue with that assessment.
Seldom have you seen a team leave the field of play at the interval looking so devastated, dejected, destroyed, so comprehensively defeated. It was only 3-0 at that stage but it could already have been seven and those heads bowed St Johnstone players knew it. They had been thrashed.
And the hat-trick hero, Ryan Christie came in for some pretty special praise from his delighted manager, who this time last year was trying to sign him for Hibs! Thankfully that move never happened and when the media throw the John McGinn is wonderful stuff in our faces every time the former Celtic target has a decent game for Aston Villa, just remember that Ryan Christie benefited the most from that deal not happening and he’s certainly making the most of his long awaited opportunity to be a top Celtic Star.
“Ryan is a great boy, a great professional and he’s easy to work with. He wants to do well, he wants to impress, and I’ve inherited a great player,” Lenny said after yesterday’s perfect performance, as reported by the official Celtic site.
“He uses the time away to look after himself. He’s far stronger than he’s ever been and that gives him confidence. He’s always been a technician but we’re seeing a great player who only keeps getting better.”
Lenny also looked forward to the next game, the vital Champions League qualifier against CFR Cluj who have been noisy rivals all week since they qualified for the third round.
Hatem Abd Elhamed turned out to be a right back after all as he proved yesterday in the hour or so he managed before limping away to great applause nursing a dead-leg. The Israeli we were told by the media and some on the more gloomy forums that Hatem was really a central defender but as we tried to tell everyone, he is a right back who played for most of the last two seasons as a central defender.
Yesterday he was excellent and set up three excellent early chances through fine play down that right wing.
“Hatem got a dead leg against St Johnstone, but we’ll just have to monitor him. I thought he was outstanding and Boli had a great game as well on the opposite side. Marian should be back in the squad for Wednesday as well. We’ve got a good depth there and he’ll add to that again,” Lenny said.
Jozo Simunovic and Christopher Jullien, both suspended yesterday in rather bizarre circumstances, are free to play in Romania.
Lenny also made a passing reference to the noisy opponents, whether it be in the European or domestic football, and pointed out that Celtic do their talking on the park.
“Speaking generally, we don’t need to send messages, there are three trophies sitting out there at the front of the pitch. We talk on the pitch, that’s what we like to do.
“I think this side has more goals in them. There’s a belief that when they play like the way they did against St Johnstone and take their chances, it works. That pleases me more than anything.”
Also on The Celtic Star...have a look at some of our other articles on yesterday’s brilliant performance and also check out how Steven Gerrard’s 86 min game league win seems to be incorrect! Clicking on a few of these links below genuinely helps us make the The Star even better going forward. Cheers!
‘The fans were exceptional, the atmosphere was incredible,’ Ryan Christie…see HERE.
Sandman’s Definitive Ratings – Tommy Wright is first through The Doors of Perception…see HERE.
Steven Gerrard is Wrong! ‘The Brutal Truth’ is that Celtic, not Rangers won the ’86 mins’ League… see HERE.
‘Neil Lennon has thrown off the Shackles’ says Niall J, ‘it could be a Magical Ride’…see HERE.
Watch Rod Stewart singing ‘Here we Go, Ten in a Row’ at Paradise…see HERE.
‘Ryan Christie who is the best player around. Anyone disagree?’ David Potter…see HERE.
Magnificent Celtic’s Seven Heaven…see HERE.
