"It would be brilliant, wouldn't it?", BT Sport pundit on Celtic job rumours, Howe, Lampard

By Euan Davidson

February 27, 2021

The Celtic hunt for a new manager is on.

Endless specualtion is continuing, with a litany of names linked to the job. Everyone from Eddie Howe to Enzo Maresca, via Sean Dyche and Mick McCarthy, have been linked to Celtic in recent days.

It’s been a gift for the gossip mills, and, you’d have thought, football writers.

Talking of Football writers, BT Sport have a podcast named just that. Presenters Mike Calvin, Anne Marie Batson and Jonathan Northcroft discussed various football stories on the latest episode (25/02),

Of course, there’s a great deal of English intrigue. While foreign coaches like Maresca, Martinez and others have been linked, Frank Lampard and Eddie Howe are top of the media’s list.

Anne Marie Batson said (28:28):

“Celtic have got options for sure. They could take somebody like Eddie Howe. From what I understand, I think he’s keen to get back into the Premier League.

“It could be the right job for Frank [Lampard] actually, in terms of keeping his foot within the game. He’s a talented coach, it’s just finding the right team that matches his levels.

“It would be brilliant wouldn’t it? Let’s be honest. Having Frank Lampard in Celtic’s dugout and Stevie G in the Rangers dugout. I think that would be such a great story for Scottish Football.”

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard for England / (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

BT Sport pundits turning Celtic into a Premier League side-show

Yes, we realise the global reach of Celtic, and that so many people will be talking about what we do next.

However, as I’ve said before, I’m not keen on Frank Lampard getting the Celtic job. Primarily for his inexperience, despite having had a season and a half at Chelsea. But also because it makes the Glasgow Derby a side-show act for Premier League supporters and pundits.

Yes, Lampard v Gerrard is exciting in a sense, but only really to English football fans. They’re quite entitled to have their fun, but it would be doing Scottish Football a huge disservice.

Regardless of who you support in the SPFL, these leagues are historic and unique. Each club has their own patter, their own history. Hundreds of thousands of supporters who trudge through the rain and the cold to shout at some men once, twice a week.

Scottish Football doesn’t exist so Twitter accounts called UltimateFirminho can tweet about the Glasgow Derby. That’s the demographic this appeals to.

For Celtic fans, this is important. Lampard may be a viable candidate, but the whole “England’s Golden Generation” angle is already played out.

No more of this, thanks.

ELSEWHERE: A lot of fans won’t like it, but it works.