Well, it happened: Celtic manager Neil Lennon has left the club [Celtic FC].
While it was entirely inevitable, there was still an element of shock about last night’s breaking news [The Sun]. For one thing, it never, ever looked like Lennon would “resign”. There was nearly always an excuse after each dismal result, and the board looked to be entirely asleep.
The fact that we got to this point, 18 points behind Rangers in our 10IAR season, is a disgrace. But, here we are: the Bhoys need a new manager. We can finally speak in absolutes, rather than hypotheticals.
Well, about some things, anyway. We have zero idea who will be appointing a new manager, let alone who that manager will be. What’s clear from previous appointments is that there’ll be a big budget made available. Attacking football will be the order, as well as a level of prestige.
The board can’t afford another project manager. As loved as Ronny Deila was, he wasn’t the right man, and he represents a gamble Celtic can’t take again.
With that in mind, here are 5 free agent managers, or certainly, available names, who would generate some genuine excitement for Celtic’s imminent rebuild.
Eddie Howe: the favourite for Celtic job
Let’s get the most obvious one out of the way first: Eddie Howe, out of work after his resignation from Bournemouth last season, is many supporters’ outstanding candidate.
Beloved by staff and players alike, Howe has pedigree in England, following a series of promotions with the Cherries. His un-fancied south coasters rose all the way to the Premiership, where they stayed for five seasons [Premier League]. The young manager’s stock is sky-high, still, despite the manner with which he left his beloved club.
A manager keen on high-pressing, high-intensity football, Howe’s style is a total fit with Celtic’s ethos. More than that, he represents the “family values” of a club like Celtic, as these quotes from David Webb show:
“[Howe is] very good at working in a coaching capacity, but also very good at working with staff. He wanted to get to know the players, his staff, everyone in the club. I think that’s important. When you see a head coach adhere to not only his footballing qualities, but also his human qualities around the training ground.
“Any club that Eddie goes to in the future, that’s the sort of atmosphere he likes to bring. Clear playing style, really good with people, real good identity and wants everyone to be on the same hymn sheet going forward.”
Celtic, though, need to act fast.
Lucien Favre
Just yesterday, we spoke about Lucien Favre. The former BVB man endured a tough end to his spell in Dortmund, sure. But the fact he was in that job shows the calibre of the man.
Two Swiss league titles and two Swiss Cups is all he’s had to show for his career in management, yet it’s his work in making sleeping giants competitive across competitions that’s impressive. A veteran of European competitions, he’s topped groups with BVB, as well as turning Borussia Mönchengladbach into serial competitors on the continental stage.
The Swiss manager has the nous, tactical flexibility and experience. Under Favre, stars like Ter-Stegen, Granit Xhaka, Marco Reus and Dante have developed into top players. That ability to develop players in-house is vital, with Celtic’s finances uncertain given the impact of Covid-19.
With a reputation of making players better, and being a serial match-winner (Favre boasts a higher BVB win percentage than Jürgen Klopp, per DW), Favre is an outstanding candidate in his own right.
Rafael Benitez
Look: we got Brendan Rodgers before.
Rafael Benitez, is of course, an ambitious target. The 60-year-old Spaniard has won La Liga titles, the Champions League, the Europa League (twice) and a plethora of other trophies [Rafa Benitez Official]. Additionally, he’s not long departed China, who throw crazy money at big-name European coaches. He’ll be expensive.
Fine, it’s more likely that Benitez would want a return to the English top-flight, but what a coup this would be for Celtic. In an interview with Pat Nevin, the ex-Celtic academy player and Chelsea legend put it in his own words:
“To be honest, Rafa is phenomenal. He did an amazing job at Newcastle. I spent time with him down at Chelsea; what a brilliant bloke.
“[He’s] an honourable chap. That guy knows the game inside-out. If I was any club looking for a manager, any club at any level of football just now, I’d run over hot coals to get that guy.
“Rafa would be amazing. That’s a gold-standard kind of guy.”
Gold-standard indeed. Truly, you never know. Celtic might be the next port of call.
Henrik Larsson: a Celtic return?
Before you laugh us out of the room, consider this:
Henrik Larsson is still a Celtic icon. He’s currently coaching under Ronald Koeman at Barcelona, where he won a Champions League as a player. Is there anyone on this planet held in higher regard by Celtic fans? You could name surely less than a handful, if any.
Yes, his managerial spells have been mixed at best, catastrophic at worse. In 2019, Larsson left his boyhood heroes under a cloud [AS], with a second spell at Helsingborgs not exactly going to plan.
Still, the club have season tickets to sell. Can you imagine the reaction if Henrik Larsson turned up at Celtic Park to lead a new era at the club? It’s storybook stuff. With the resources and budget afforded to him at a club like Celtic, where he spent 7 phenomenal years as a player, it might be just what Larsson needs to repair his image as a top coach.
Clearly, he’s held in high enough esteem to be high-up at Barça, even if the Catalans are having a difficult season. For immediate placation, this is the board’s maverick choice.
Frank Lampard
As someone who represents the English “Golden Generation”, is an avowed Conservative supporter and would feed endless “content” in facing Gerrard, I’ve stated before that I’m not keen on Frank Lampard. Maybe that’s just me.
However, Celtic can ill-afford to ignore a young manager who achieved a 4th place finish in his first top-flight campaign as a head coach. Especially when he’s unattached.
The Sun described “Lamps” as an instant front-runner in late January, upon leaving Chelsea. Harry Redknapp, Lampard’s uncle, has talked up the Celtic job, claiming it would “certainly [be] something that would interest any manager”. There is momentum behind the Lampard-Celtic rumour mill.
From a footballing perspective, it mades a degree of sense. Lampard likes his teams to attack relentlessly, relying on N’Golo Kanté and Kovacic as a double-pivot in the middle of the park. That might suit the Soro-McGregor duo, surely the future of Celtic’s midfield.
Equally, he likes wide players, which is something that would go down well with Celtic supporters. He’s been criticised for tactical naïveté, of being too gung-ho, but in the Scottish Premiership he will be surely afforded more luxury to attack.
Look, he’s by no means my personal favourite on this list, but there are far worse options, too.
READ MORE: Why Neil Lennon had to leave now, rather than later.
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