Neil Lennon: Hibs have to be at their '˜very best' to get result against Celtic

Neil Lennon is wary of the threat posed by Celtic and believes Hibs need to be at their very best to get a result. Picture: SNS Group

The Hoops head to the Capital this weekend after last week’s emphatic 5-1 league win over Kilmarnock, a result which saw Brendan Rodgers’ side return to the top of the table.

On Thursday night, Celtic face Red Bull Salzburg in their final UEFA Europa League group match.

Lennon, who saw his side record their first win in seven matches with a 1-0 win away to Hamilton last weekend, reckons his players will have to be on top of their game - and hope that their opponents may put in a below-par performance.

The former Celtic captain and manager was asked if his current team can compete with the champions, and replied: “Yes, at any given time, but when [Celtic] are in the mood and with the mentality they’ve shown under Brendan [Rodgers] over the two-and-a-half years he’s been in charge, they’re fantastic.

“They play the big games really well and seven trophies in a row speaks for itself.

“Celtic can do what they did to Kilmarnock, who were top of the league, to any team on their day, so we’re hoping they have their frailties on the day - but we’ll have to play at our very best to get something out of it.”

A brace from Odsonne Edouard and strikes from Tom Rogic and Olivier Ntcham gave Celtic a 4-2 victory in the last meeting between the two sides, at Parkhead, with Florian Kamberi and Martin Boyle on the scoresheet for Hibs.

A total of 24 goals have been scored in the previous six games between the two sides and Lennon feels the goal tally reflects the style of football both teams try to play.

“Both teams want to play attacking football, and have a go,” he said.

“The last game Celtic were fantastic in the first half and we played really well in the second half. We ended up on the wrong side of a 4-2 defeat but we came away thinking that we had made an impression, which a lot of teams don’t do so we’re looking for more of the same this weekend.”