Former Celtic defender and assistant manager Johan Mjallby has thrown his support behind his former team-mate Neil Lennon in the quest for ten in a row.
The Celtic manager has come under intense pressure since the start of the season; three big games against Ferencvaros, Sparta Prague and our city rivals have been so bad it’s left Celtic fans scratching their heads.
The performances haven’t been up to scratch and just when you think we’re gaining some sort of momentum, we play badly and hit square one again.
The need for consistency is great but given the season isn’t normal, the games coming thick and fast offer no time to stop and re-jig what’s going on.
Neil Lennon must manage on the fly and hope he can get his team flying on all cylinders.
They are shipping too many set pieces as of late and need to have more controlled performances in order to really turn a corner.
Speaking on the Celtic Huddle Podcast Mjallby backed the Celtic manager and claims while the pressure is on Neil, there’s no where else he’d rather be: “I was impressed by him when I worked with him. He’s been through a lot in his playing and management career at Celtic.
“Of course I have sympathy with him because he is under enormous pressure and has such a heavy workload.
“But on the other hand, there is no other place Neil Lennon would love to be.
“He breathes Celtic. He breathes football. So I think he loves this challenge. I really do. It’s a chance to make history.”
Talking about the tactics side of things, Johan revealed the Celtic manager has had to adjust to the needs of younger players and how it’s different from what went on in the past.
“I think he works more tactically now than he used to. He knows that today’s generation really need to be pinpointed what to do.
“They don’t want any responsibility. That’s not a criticism, that’s just the way it is.
“They need to be told exactly what to do.
“I think it is something that is a bit new to Neil [Lennon] but he learns and takes it on. He’s certainly not a dinosaur.
“The years I spent with him, he was spot on tactically.
“He had a lot of great ideas that he didn’t always use, but was great during games to pinpoint whether things needed to change defensively or attacking wise.”
