Johan Mjallby says Neil Lennon should be allowed to lead out cup final team

NEIL Lennon should be allowed to lead Celtic out on to the Hampden pitch at next Sunday's Co-operative Insurance Cup final, his assistant manager Johan Mjallby said yesterday.

Celtic have yet to decide if they will appeal against the four-match touchline ban which Lennon is currently serving but, as it stands, he will be barred from the technical and tunnel areas at the national stadium from an hour before kick-off against Rangers.

"I think that is very harsh," Mjallby said. "We all understood when he got his ban that he can't be on the touchline, but I think he should be allowed to lead the team out."

Lennon will still be allowed to go into the dressing-room to address his players at half-time, and can also go on to the pitch shortly after the end of the match. If the manager's touchline ban remains, however, it is Mjallby who is likely to lead the Celtic squad out for what will be their sixth meeting of the season with Rangers. The Swede has also taken charge of media conferences since Lennon's ban began, but he explained that was not because of the ban.

"The thing is he has been going through a lot outside the football pitch lately," Mjallby continued, referring to the threats which have led to Lennon being given round-the-clock security. "He is manager of a football club and he wants the players and the team to be the focus. That is why he decided today not to do the press."

With a Scottish Cup quarter-final at Inverness tomorrow, a league match against Hibs in midweek and then the CIS final four days later, Celtic are about to enter their busiest week of the season so far. Mjallby believes that handling that week will be more difficult without Lennon alongside him on the touchline.

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"It is a big blow for us. Obviously, he is disappointed. He wants to be on the touchline. That's the place where he is going to be the most effective for us. It doesn't change the dynamics with him not being on the touchline, but he is less effective. It is an important factor in that he is a great motivator. It is important for him to be close to the players. The rest of us maybe have to take a wee bit more responsibility."

Mjallby remains convinced that, despite the threats against him, Lennon has every intention of staying at Celtic as manager and making a success of his first full season as manager. "He is a strong character. He has every opportunity in the world to become a very successful manager.

"He is fine. I see him more or less every day and he is working ever so hard with the team, and focusing on the game plan, on what to do with our team. We do not worry about him. He has not even dreamt about leaving Celtic. We all get tired now and again about speaking about other things rather than the football. But that seems to the way right now."