Neil Lennon gives Celtic board his 'blacklist' after cup upset

• Lennon screams intructions from the touchline during Saturday's disastrous match for Celtic

Lennon refused to reveal the identities of those he has recommended to major shareholder Dermot Desmond and chief executive Peter Lawwell.

But if the former Parkhead captain's behaviour during Saturday's shock Active Nation Scottish Cup semi-final defeat is anything to go by, Landry NGuemo, Marc-Antoine Fortune and Georgios Samaras may well feature on that list.

NGuemo was hauled off before half-time at Hampden, while Lennon singled out forwards Fortune and Samaras for criticism in what was a scathing post-match interview.

Asked if he had made his recommendation to the board, Lennon said: "Yes – but I'm not going to tell you who."

Saturday's defeat, widely regarded as one of the worst in Celtic's 123-year history, hurt Lennon's hopes of landing the manager's job on a permanent basis.

But the Northern Irishman appeared cautiously optimistic the result had not been the death knell for him, saying: "I'll be judged over the next five or six games and we'll assess it in the summer and speak to the powers that be."

He added: "I've spoken to Peter and I've spoken to Dermot.

"They're private conversations and not they're for the public consumption just yet."

Lennon did acknowledge the board "might" ultimately judge him on the one performance and that supporters may feel the same.

"I can understand the fans at the minute thinking, 'He's nowhere near ready for it, hasn't got the experience for it'," said the 38-year-old, who reiterated his desire to succeed Tony Mowbray.

Some fans made their feelings known by descending on Parkhead after Saturday's defeat to confront the squad as they arrived back from Hampden.

Lennon expects similar hostility when Celtic host Motherwell in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League tomorrow.

"I think that's pretty obvious," said Lennon ahead of his fourth game in charge.

"I think it'll be a difficult night for the players, basically the same as it was for my first game against Kilmarnock on the back of the St Mirren performance.

"They showed a lot of character that day, so they'll have to do the same again."