Neil Lennon once said John Kennedy was ready to succeed him at Celtic

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Neil Lennon is out and John Kennedy is in – that’s the latest regarding the Celtic managerial post.

Yes, Kennedy has managed to cling onto a role at Parkhead despite the departure of his boss. It’s been that way for some time now. Regardless of who comes in and who leaves, Kennedy always seems to remain.

It’s been that way since 2010 when he joined as a first-team scout. Since then he’s held roles as under-19 coach, development team coach, first-team coach, and assistant manager. His gradual progression towards becoming a manager has occurred under Tony Mowbray, Neil Lennon (x2), and Brendan Rodgers regimes. No matter the overhaul, Kennedy remains.

But that will be no surprise for the outgoing boss, who once admitted that Kennedy was ready to replace him as manager as far back as 2019.

“He is ambitious”

In comments published by the Herald back in November 2019, Lennon said on the new man: “He is ambitious, he has his own ambitions, but the club means a lot to him. He has made a huge contribution to the club and he still has a big contribution to make before he either steps in here, in the hot seat eventually, or he goes on and does his own thing.

“He could do it now – he has been first team coach under a few managers but this time he is number two or number one and a half as I call him because he is that close to me. That has maybe really captured people’s attention and he is still young enough not to take plunge just yet but if you ask me if he is ready to go into management, I would say yeah, he is ready to go into management or the head coach role now.

“He has been doing it now for four or five years. He is 36. People say you never know when you are ready and that would be the case, but I think he is ready.”

Neil Lennon not the only one to value John Kennedy

Kennedy has had plenty of ex-colleagues come out and sing his praises. From Damien Duff labelling him “second to none”, to Brendan Rodgers trying to take him to Leicester [The Herald].

There is undoubtedly a section of the Celtic support who still haven’t taken to the former centre-back. A minority who believe that it’s a touch suspicious he’s still around after so many managerial changes. But it’s important to recognise that he’s there on merit.

Remember, it’s not as if he’s been kept on for no reason other than he’s John Kennedy. He had to go through an interview with Rodgers before he was able to stay with that star-studded regime. Kennedy, for whatever faults he does have, has earned his right to sit at the top table at Parkhead.

It’s also worth remembering that he was reportedly Hibernian’s first-choice to take the manager’s job at Easter Road before Jack Ross was appointed [Scottish Sun]. Kennedy has clearly impressed the right people.

And now he’s been given a big opportunity to make the right impression. An opportunity to show, in glimpses, that he has the man-management and crisis-management skills needed to be a smooth operator in the dugout.

Lennon leaving is absolutely massive for Kennedy. Let’s hope he shows up well ahead of another regime change this summer.

In other news, we take a look at the question mark surrounding one key Celtic coach.