Lennon eyes chance to close the gap

A double from Anthony Stokes gave the Hoops a 2-0 victory at Inverness in Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off, before the Light Blues were held to a goalless draw by St Johnstone at Ibrox.

And with Celtic due to play Dunfermline and St Mirren before Rangers face Kilmarnock next Sunday, the champions’ lead could be cut to four points by the time they visit Rugby Park.

But while Celtic look as if they could be forcing their way back into contention, Lennon is focusing on their game in hand against the Pars on Wednesday.

“We have to make the most of that,” he said. “We look forward to that and are in good spirits.

“I am pleased that we are finding a bit of consistency and a few individuals are finding the consistency and playing at the levels that they can. It was important to win the game against Inverness.

“You always go there with a little bit of trepidation because you just never know what you are going to get.

“We were fortunate with the conditions being as mild as they were, but the attitude was brilliant and I was delighted.”

Lennon praised midfielder Ki Sung-Yueng for his contribution as a second-half substitute after recovering from a virus which had required a stay in hospital during the international break.

“Ki manipulates the ball well and passes it well,” Lennon added. “And we were a wee bit sticky in terms of passing.

“We were worried that he hadn’t played much football in two weeks, that’s why we didn’t take the chance by starting him. But he felt a lot better and made a great contribution when he came on.

“Badr El-Kaddouri and Victor Wanyama both had a virus and were touch and go. I thought Wanyama was superb and I thought El-Kaddouri had a great game so credit to them for basically playing.”

Lennon’s squad has been boosted by the addition of former Arsenal trainee, 21-year-old Englishman Andre Blackman, who has agreed an undisclosed deal with the Parkhead club.