Kieran Tierney has stated his belief that Celtic wouldn’t have won the league had it not been for Neil Lennon.
Lennon is looking to seal a historic treble treble on Saturday. Hearts are the opposition at Hampden, and legendary status awaits for this group of Celtic players.
But all of their success was thrown up in the air by the departure of Brendan Rodgers back in February. Celtic were eight points clear, but had some extremely tough games coming up. Lennon maned to guide the side on an 11-game unbeaten run, and ultimately took the spoils in the title-race.
Speaking to the Daily Record about it, Tierney doesn’t think Celtic would’ve won it had Lennon not been the man to come in.
“We wouldn’t have won the league or been in this position without him. He’s been great for us since he came in. He’s steadied us when we needed it.
“As soon as he came in was two tough games with Hearts away and Hibs away and those games could have changed our season. For him to come in and do that so quickly and have an impact on us every day in training was massive for us.
“He knows how to win as he’s been here before as both a player and a manager. He knows how to win as he’s been here before as both a player and a manager.”
Do you believe KT?
When Lennon came in, Celtic had quite the meaty advantage as it was. Rodgers has us on a winning run that stretched back to just after the winter break. Eight points clear and cruising, even if tough games lay ahead.
Overall, Lennon has won nine of 13 games. Whilst performances haven’t been great, he’s done his remit so far. He guided the Hoops over the line and could seal the Scottish Cup too after a tough run to the final.
Despite that, of course, it’s a stretch to say we couldn’t have won the league without Lennon. Had a variety of other managers come in the door, Celtic likely would’ve still managed to get over the line – that was due to how positive a position we were in post-Rodgers.
Of course Lennon deserves the credit for completing the task. Celtic could’ve capitulated and easily managed to lose their grip on the championship.
But is Lennon the only man we could’ve relied on to win it? With the gap we had, most likely not.
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