Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths has disclosed the heartwarming message Neil Lennon has given him since his errors at the start of the season.
Griffiths infamously arrived back at pre-season training with a poor level of fitness. This was then followed by a calf injury picked up before the season began.
However, the Scotland international made his first appearance of the campaign against St Johnstone this afternoon, and he certainly made his mark. Griffiths bagged a last-minute winner that maintained Celtic’s title advantage, with the striker congratulated by his manager on the pitch at full-time.
And speaking after what was a big moment in Griffiths’ Celtic career, the striker has admitted that he never felt his time at Parkhead was coming to an end thanks to Lennon’s comments.
As quoted by the National, Griffiths said: “No (I never felt my Celtic career was under threat). I spoke to the gaffer at length many times and he always says as long as he is here, I will be here.
“I just need to keep working on my fitness and make sure that when I am called upon that I make an impact.”
A sign of the faith Lennon has in Griffiths
It’s easy to forget that Lennon was the man who brought Griffiths to Parkhead back in January 2014. It was the current boss who initially put faith in the then-Wolves centre-forward when not many were in agreement with him.
Since then, Griffiths has gone on to net 116 goals in 235 appearances (Transfermarkt). It really is ridiculous stuff, but nobody knows the Edinburgh-born centre-forward better than the current boss.
What these comments from Lennon towards Griffiths also do is ensure that there doesn’t need to be any speculation over his future whenever he’s out for a period of time in the future. He has, after all, pretty much confirmed Griffiths has a long-term future in Glasgow so long as he’s the manager.
It’s clear that there’s a special bond between Lennon and Griff. The manager just seems to know how to deal with his personality, and he’s always been the one to get the best out of him.
It’s now going to be an intriguing situation here moving forward. Can Griffiths truly add to his goal this afternoon and start making more of an impact for Celtic in the bigger games? That simply has to be his next goal – he’s been out of the team on a consistent basis for far too long.
No matter what happens between now and the end of the campaign however, one thing’s for sure, Lennon’s always had Griffiths’ back.
In other news, Neil Lennon says one of his Celtic’s stars needs to “settle down”; believes the transfer window is affecting him.
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