Ambitious Neil Lennon eyes Celtic job 'for keeps'

NEIL Lennon laid his cards on the table on his first day as interim Celtic manager by declaring immediately that he wants the job "for keeps".

Lennon has been put in charge on a game-by-game basis, which is expected to last for the remainder of the season, and quickly brought in former team-mate Johan Mjallby as his assistant.

The pair were reunited at Lennoxtown yesterday as they took training ahead of today's match against Kilmarnock at Parkhead, and the players have been warned that the standards they have slipped to – a humiliating 4-0 defeat at St Mirren costing manager Tony Mowbray his job – are completely unacceptable.

"I never want to see that again," said Lennon. "I made it pretty clear what is expected of them between now and the end of the season. They need to restore the club's reputation and their own."

The former Celtic captain returned to the club as a first-team coach under Gordon Strachan, but was marginalised when Mowbray took over last summer and brought in his own assistants, Peter Grant and Mark Venus. Lennon has had little involvement in first-team affairs since then.

However, the Irishman has revealed Mowbray urged him to step into his shoes at Celtic. Lennon spoke to Mowbray and his predecessors, Martin O'Neill and Gordon Strachan, both of whom he played under. Asked what advice he was given by the trio, Lennon joked: "Don't do it!

"No, not at all. I spoke to Martin O'Neill, spoke to Gordon Strachan and spoke to Tony about it. They all said what a great job it is, it was a wonderful opportunity for me and told me that I would regret it if I didn't take it. I think it is an absolute privilege and I'm hoping that everyone will come out and support me and the team from here on in.

"I don't think anything prepares you for being a manager of the Old Firm. Yes, I have been here ten years, but you can have the most experienced manager and still find it difficult here."

Lennon made it clear he wants to manage Celtic on a permanent basis. "Yes, I do want the job for keeps, everyone knows what this club means to me," he said.

"It is a wonderful opportunity for me. Obviously I am coming in in difficult circumstances, but I have a job to do between now and the end of the season."

O'Neill endorsed Lennon's credentials for the role, saying: He is just the kind of person that leads by example and was great in the dressing room. Neil did that so often for me that, at times, I thought he was doing my job."