Talk about what John Kennedy’s future should hold has never been something he’s been willing to go into since taking charge of Celtic on an interim basis.
He’s never actually ruled himself out of the running to be the permanent boss. However, at the same time, he’s hardly been a fan-favourite for it either.
His record at face value is patchy. He’s been in charge of six games so far and only managed to win three of them. Two others have ended in draws, whilst he suffered his first defeat against Rangers on Sunday in the Scottish Cup defeat at Ibrox.
In addition to these difficult results, he’s made some real amateurish blunders. His in-game management at times has been found wanting, none more so than against Rangers back in March when he waited 79 minutes to make his first substitution. This was despite the fact our players were tiring and he had five subs to choose from.
Kennedy has also taken one of our best players, David Turnbull, in four of those six matches. Three of which he was the first player off.
Not to mention there have been some questionable tactical decisions too. The decision not to go for broke against Rangers at Celtic Park and instead settle for a point was hugely disappointing. Even more concerning was the diamond formation Kennedy decided to play at Ibrox on Sunday with wing-backs who refused to overlap.
There have been majorly poor decisions made so far that you just don’t get to make at Celtic. The supporters notice these things, and the demands of the job mean that it isn’t acceptable.
John Kennedy’s future holds an obvious path
However, Kennedy has also shown some promising signs at times too. He’s managed to improve the level of performances to an extent and, before Sunday, he looked to have tightened up the back-line. He’s only conceded three goals in those six games in charge – all against Rangers.
In addition to that, he impresses with the media. You can tell Kennedy has been working in the game a long time with how comfortable he is in front of the press. But it’s a massively different spotlight as the manager of the club, and he’s dealt with the pressure extremely well.
He’s also shown his ability to stand up for the club when necessary. Kennedy rightfully pointed out the hypocrisy and inconsistency in allowing Rangers’ Covid Five the opportunity to play in the Scottish Cup [The Scotsman]. He was also happy to call out Borna Barisic and Willie Collum for the penalty we didn’t get at Parkhead against Rangers [Celtic TV]. Not forgetting he also showed real bravery and belief in his players by saying on our day that we’re the best in the country days before the last derby [Daily Record].
Kennedy has shown some promising signs. Unfortunately, there have been too many tactically poor decisions that prove he can’t seriously be considered for this job.
Time to develop elsewhere
But he’s shown some impressive traits in other areas both on and off the pitch. The right move for him is to go out and earn his stripes elsewhere. Especially if he wants to be Celtic manager somewhere down the line.
The interim Celtic boss is well-admired in football and has plenty of high-profile people in the game singing his praises. Let’s not forget how highly Brendan Rodgers valued him [Sky Sports]. He should, therefore, be able to bag a managerial gig elsewhere relatively comfortable. Somebody will be happy to take a gamble on him, especially after this experience with Celtic.
Winning these final few games would reflect well on him. And even though this season hasn’t turned out how he would’ve wanted, doors will have opened for him elsewhere. It’s vital he goes through one.
In other news, we take a look at what John Kennedy said about the upcoming Celtic rebuild.
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