Celtic boss Neil Lennon recently made an unexpected striking comparison. He compared Vakoun Issouf Bayo’s heading ability to that of Hoops icon Henrik Larsson.
Lennon made the comments after Bayo scored his first goal for the Hoops with a fine header in the 5-0 Betfred Cup win over Partick Thistle.
“Bayo has that natural talent for timing in the air. You don’t see it very often nowadays because heading the ball’s a real dying art” he said, as reported by the Scottish Sun.
“Ability that Henrik used to have”
“He’s got that aerial threat and that hanging ability that Henrik used to have.”
Some people may be surprised to see Lennon compare Bayo to one of Celtic’s best ever players. However, it is actually a great bit of man-management from the Hoops boss.
Think of the confidence Bayo will get when he sees those comments from the Hoops boss. It will give him a spring in his step, and will only improve his game.
It is important that Lennon highlights the contribution that Bayo is making as he recovers from a slow start to his Celtic career.
He rarely featured last season for the Hoops due to injuries. However, at the moment he seems like the number two striker at the club behind Odsonne Edouard.
Unfortunate to miss upcoming match
It is just unfortunate for the player that he will miss the Europa League match against Cluj on Thursday after his harsh sending-off against Rennes.
However, Bayo could well have an impact for the Hoops in the upcoming league games against Hibs and Livingston.
It would be not that much of a shock to see Bayo start both of those games. If he performs to the level that he did against Partick, he could thrive in those fixtures.
Lennon is giving the player a confidence boost, and it looks to be very smart management from the Celtic boss.
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