Neil Lennon makes experience his transfer priority

AS he attained permanence in his position, Celtic manager Neil Lennon made much of his intention to stiffen up the disparate and character-deficient squad he had inherited by recruiting big personalities and experienced types of a British and Irish hue.

• Celtic manager Neil Lennon

Fast forward five weeks and yesterday afternoon found Lennon undertaking his Emirates Cup press duties and lamenting the loss of goalkeeping target David James to Bristol City as he prepared to select teams to face Lyon today and host Arsenal tomorrow with a squad bolstered by a 22-year-old Mexican a 22-year-old Israeli, a 22-year-old Englishman, a 23-year-old Welshman, a 24-year-old Scot, a 27-year-old Irishman and a 30-year-old South Korean. Efrin Juarez, Baram Kayal, Gary Hooper, Joe Ledley, Charlie Mulgrew, Daryl Murphy and Cha Du-ri no doubt were wanted by Lennon. But they neatly fit the identikit of players that would appeal to chief executive Peter Lawwell either from having potential resale value, raising the club's profile in certain markets, or both.

They are the sort of signings that do not appear manager-specific at Celtic Park, then. The English, and England-based trio, of 39-year-old James, 35-year-old Sol Campbell and 31-year-old Jimmy Bullard were, in contrast, all of that. They were so obviously Lennon's attempt at making a clear mark on the squad and with players whose very stature would make them influential figures in the dressing room. Just like what Chris Sutton, Alan Thompson, John Hartson and he himself did for Martin O'Neill a decade ago.

Lennon remains convinced he was right to go for high-profile, high-earning, high-mileage Englishman - even if the SPL and Glasgow seems ultimately to have proven too removed from their work and life requirements, with Campbell opting to join Newcastle United this week and Bullard surely not now sought to join a team of midfielders at Lennon's disposal.

"I don't think we would have been far away with either," Lennon said. "David James had a personal reason for not coming to see us last Monday, and the reason he has signed for Bristol City is that it is close to his home. It was probably the same with Sol (and the north east]. We did put up a good pitch to Sol and we put up a good pitch to Jimmy Bullard as well. So we have been looking for that experience that I talked about at the end of last season, but we haven't been able to nail anyone down yet.We will keep looking."

Lennon has enough on his plate knitting together the players he has attracted into a squad ahead of an assault on the mountainous deficit they face when Braga come to Celtic Park in midweek. The Portuguese do so with a seemingly unassailable 3-0 led from the first leg of their Champions League third round qualifier. The Irishman sees value in Celtic's weekend exertions to London in that respect, even if it might seem a jaunt too far with what is looming in four days and what is already behind them after a ten-day, seaboard criss-crossing four-game tour of America.

"Some of the players need game time together. They haven't had much. And it's against quality opposition as well, so it will be a really good work-out for them as well. It will give us the chance to look at a few things for ourselves, not just with Braga in mind, but for the season ahead.

"I have no qualms about this tournament whatsoever. The fact it is sandwiched between the two Champions League games, we knew that was going to happen anyway. We are quite able to cope with it all."

Celtic proved unable to cope with the curiously tame threat of Braga on Wednesday night, the concession of two cheap goals in the final quarter of an hour still rankling with Lennon. Asked yesterday if the players were still hurting, he said: "They better be. The tie isn't dead, but we have given ourselves a lot to do. We haven't let the players see the game again. The staff have gone through it, and we might go through a little bit of it tonight."

Lennon was dismissive of claims from German goalkeeper Timo Hilderbrand that the club had held talks with the out-of-contract 31-year-old. "Names have been thrown around, but there is nothing conclusive on that one and we haven't held any talks as far as I'm aware," said the Celtic manager, whose priority would appear to be a goalkeeper to rank ahead of Lukasz Zaluska, whom he did not shy away from blaming for the loss of Braga's third goal.

"We've got a good goalkeeper in Zaluska and it's imperative we get another one in," he said. "We lost a superb goalie in Artur Boruc, so it's important we replace him."

Meanwhile, with Aiden McGeady's days as a Celtic player appearing numbered, Paddy McCourt made a pitch for filling the creative void that would be created by McGeady's departure. "If Aiden does leave, it will definitely open up a space to me and I'll try my best to grab it," he said, confirming that he had signed a three-year extension with the club.

The 26-year-old did so despite Blackpool's desperation to acquire his services. Lennon yesterday gave his fellow Irishman a glowing reference. "Traditionally, the club has had guys who can beat players, eliminate them and take them out of the game. I want that in my team and Paddy's in that calibre," the Celtic manager said.

"He's had fitness problems through no fault of his own, but we're delighted he's decided to extend his contract.We want him to stay injury-free for as long as possible because he's a mercurial talent. When he's on-song there's not many better. I hope he can step up and establish himself in the side now. There's no reason why he can't. He's been here for two years and hasn't played as much as he'd have liked but he'll get a chance now."

Such enthusiasm for his abilities played its part in persuading McCourt his future lay at Celtic. As did core fitness problems that had limited his appearances. McCourt signed from Derry City in the summer of 2008 after catching the eye with some impressive individual goals.

He initially struggled to match his team-mates' fitness and was restricted to five substitute appearances in an injury-hit first season under Gordon Strachan.But he broke into the team on a more regular basis under Tony Mowbray, playing 14 times and scoring three goals, including two stunning solo efforts.

McCourt's only competitive match under Lennon was the Active Nation Scottish Cup semi-final defeat by Ross County but he netted another sublime goal in a post-season friendly against St Pauli. He was an unused substitute on Wednesday as Celtic lost 3-0 to Braga in the first leg of the Champions League third qualifying round, but he has decided to keep trying to force his way into Lennon's long-term plans rather than seek a move.

"Once I spoke to the manager and he told me his thoughts, I was keen to sign the extension. It was morale-boosting.

"To be honest, it was the lack of football I've played that made me want to stay here. The Premier League in England is massive, but if I'm playing week in, week out for Celtic I'd never want to leave. It was in my head that I've had two years here and not won anything. We won the League Cup, but I wasn't involved in the final. I didn't want to leave having not won a medal to show for my time with Celtic. I genuinely think there are good times ahead for the club."