Neil Lennon believes old pals act could help lure Craig Bellamy back to Celtic

NEIL Lennon believes his friendship with Craig Bellamy could prove to be a trump card in Celtic's ambitious bid to sign the Welsh international striker on a season-long loan from Manchester City.

• Craig Bellamy spent four eventful months on loan at Celtic in 2004-05 and Neil Lennon is trying to tempt the Manchester City striker back to Parkhead. Picture: SNS

The Celtic manager is also confident financial considerations will not prove to be an obstacle as he attempts to persuade Bellamy to return to the club where he spent four months on loan at the end of the 2004-05 season.

Lennon revealed he has already spoken to Bellamy, who appears to have no future at Manchester City who this week omitted him from their squad of 25 for the Europa League play-offs. The outspoken 31-year-old is understood to have been fined two weeks' wages by City for his criticism of manager Roberto Mancini.

Bellamy's home-town club Cardiff City are also keen to sign him on loan while Sunderland manager Steve Bruce has also expressed his interest in the maverick forward who has moved for combined transfer fees of 45 million during his career so far.

It had been suggested that Bellamy's reported salary of 80,000 a week would price Celtic out of the market for his services but Lennon insists that factor can be overcome as his club seek to negotiate an arrangement similar to that which saw them sign Robbie Keane on loan from Tottenham for the second half of last season.

Lennon is aware Bellamy will not be short of alternative offers but is banking on the close relationship the pair established when they were team-mates during his previous loan spell at Celtic five years ago.

"I get on well with him and that's a bargaining point for me," said Lennon. "It might give us a heads-up on other clubs. There has been contact, we are working on it, so we'll see where we go from there. I've spoken to him personally and hopefully we'll know within the next couple of days.

"I'm not entirely hopeful, but I'm optimistic. If you don't ask, you don't get. Craig will have his options but he is one we would like to bring to the club. We've been making inroads into looking at trying to get him up here. Whether we can do that is another thing.

"There has been contact with Manchester City to find out the situation. He's out of their 25-man squad, so he's obviously looking to leave. As I say, I know he has options, and we're hoping we are one of them.

"I think the fact he has been here before could be our big selling point. He enjoyed his time here and he knows what the club's about. He also has a connection with the supporters and that experience might give us a head start.

"The money isn't an issue for him. I'm sure he's made plenty of money but we don't even talk about that.We just talk about the football side of things.

"It would be up to us to negotiate with either him or the club or his agent. If he doesn't want to come here, then it would be more for football than financial reasons. I don't think Manchester City would allow him to go to another English Premier League club on loan. It's a loan move we are investigating."

Bellamy scored nine goals in 15 appearances for Celtic in 2005. His contribution was not enough to prevent Rangers winning the SPL title on a dramatic final day of that season but he did help Celtic win the Scottish Cup which remains his only senior honour in club football.

Lennon believes Bellamy would capture the imagination of the Celtic support and prove an even bigger asset second time around.

"There's no doubt he could have the same kind of impact as Robbie Keane," said Lennon. "He had a big impact when he was at Celtic in 2005 and I think he's far better now than he was then. I'm very surprised at the situation he finds himself in at City because I felt he was their best player last season. Outwith Chelsea and Manchester United, I thought he was the best player in the Premier League."

Lennon, speaking at the launch of Audi's 3m vehicle sponsorship agreement with Celtic and Rangers, also confirmed his interest in Coventry City goalkeeper Kieren Westwood. The 25-year-old Republic of Ireland international is valued at around 2m by his club and is viewed by Lennon as a potential rival to Lukasz Zaluska for the No 1 position at Celtic following the sale of Artur Boruc to Fiorentina.

"Kieren is one who interests us among a host of goalkeepers," he said. "We've made an enquiry and we're waiting on that coming back. I'm still looking for two or three more new additions but I wouldn't have thought we will have anyone else in before the SPL starts on Saturday.

"You know the positions I'm looking at. We've got one recognised goalkeeper (Zaluska) and one left-back (Charlie Mulgrew) at the moment, so I think it's fair to say I need players in those positions. I'm not saying the ones we have aren't good enough, just that we need competition for those places."

Lennon has selection problems for tomorrow's SPL opener at Inverness Caledonian Thistle with striker Gary Hooper ruled out for up to three weeks because of the calf injury he sustained in last Sunday's friendly against Blackburn. Defender Thomas Rogne, meanwhile, limped out of Norway's under-21 international against Croatia on Wednesday night with a thigh injury.

While he focuses on trying to make a winning start in the title race, Lennon admits the resignation of his mentor and former Celtic manager Martin O'Neill from Aston Villa this week may intensify the scrutiny he is placed under over the next few weeks.

"I know my critics will have him replacing me if I lose a couple of games," said Lennon. "That's because he had such an impact on Celtic and has the connection with the club and the supporters. I don't know if he'd come back or not, though, in any capacity. I don't know if it would appeal to him.

"I haven't spoken to him this week but it didn't surprise me. I'd heard a whisper it might happen because he was getting frustrated at the lack of support from upstairs at Villa. People are saying he threw the toys out of the pram, but he was just trying to make the club better. I think he earned the right to do that."