Celtic fans got so used to winning that they didn’t know what to do when it stopped..
I think that’s why criticism of Neil was over the top Frimpong backs old boss and mentor
JEREMIE FRIMPONG understands the frustration among Celtic fans but reckons some of the abuse dished out to Neil Lennon was way over the score.
The former Hoops favourite was stunned his old boss walked out of Parkhead last week.
Frimpong knew the results were not good enough this season yet believed the bond between Lennon and the club was too strong to break.
But expectations can do a funny thing to a support.
Celtic may have won five trophies on the spin under Lennon and completed the quadruple Treble but the quest for 10 in a Row became the be all and end all.
Frimpong gets it. He also thinks Celtic supporters got so used to winning they didn’t know what to do when they stopped – and it was the manager who copped the flak.
The full-back, who joined Bayer Leverkusen in a bumper £11.5m deal in January, will always be grateful for the leg up he was given by his old gaffer.
Which made it all the tougher to see the campaign calling for his head before Lennon took the decision into his own hands.
Frimpong said: “I was really surprised and I felt that because he meant everything to the club.
“Everything he did was for the club. Neil was the first manager to pick me for professional football so I’m always going to be grateful.
“Playing under him was amazing, the advice he’d give me, I played in a good team as well. I had an amazing time.
“Celtic in previous years would always win games but there was always going to be a point when they can’t win everything. They’d have to lose.
“So some of the criticism Neil was getting was a bit over the top. I feel Celtic fans were so used to winning that when it started going downhill, they didn’t know how to feel.
“But it’s normal to feel like that.”
Frimpong reckons the punters were OTT with Lennon but he won’t have a bad word to say about Hoops fans, who treated him like a hero during his 18 months in Glasgow.
He said: “When I first got to Celtic the fans made me feel welcome straight away. I really loved it. So I’m going to miss them, for sure, because they made me feel at home. Every time I walked on the street it was, ‘Hey Frimpong!’ so I’m going to miss that.
“But sometimes you can’t have all the happiness, you’ve got to go through a rough patch.” Celtic have been dragged into deep waters this season and their grip of the title could be gone for good this weekend if there’s another slip-up at Dundee United.
Frimpong knows there is a burning desire to win every week with Celts – but that’s what he liked about being at the club and why he opted for Bayer. He said: “No one likes losing. If you’re used to winning and then lose all of a sudden, obviously the feeling is something you’re not used to so it’s a bit weird. I didn’t want to feel like that again because I don’t like the feeling.
“It’s not easy to win games, if you play teams they’re going to want to show you they’re not easy. To us it was hard. The Celtic fans throughout the years they’ve been winning trophies, that is not easy.
“It’s very hard to do and now the players have gone through a spell, they get criticised. But it’s not easy at all and they have to move on from that.
“I feel like everywhere you go the demand is to win. Nobody wants to lose so I feel like at every club it’s just win games.
“You don’t play to lose, you want to win.”
Frimpong insists he didn’t jump ship at the first sign of trouble though.
The 19-year-old just couldn’t turn down the chance to have a bash at the Bundesliga.
He said: “Did I want to leave when things got bad? Of course not. This opportunity came and I was thinking about my development and I thought the German league would suit me.
“I want to play against the best, show my ability to everyone and what I can do. So it’s exciting to play against these teams and these players. “It’s been really exciting to move to Germany. At the start it was a bit hectic but now I’ve settled in really well so I’m really enjoying it.” “Their history and the Bundesliga in Germany, I felt like that would be a great challenge for me and that’s what made me think of Leverkusen.” Frimpong will always keep tabs on Celts but reckons there’s a few of his old team-mates who could also follow him over to Germany. He said: “Odsonne Edouard and Kris Ajer among others are quality players. I feel like anywhere they go they’ll fit in, they’re that good. “And if I see them at Leverkusen, of course I’ll be happy.”
Every time I walked down the street it was ‘Hey Frimpong!’ I’ll miss that JEREMIE FRIMPONG ON RELATIONSHIP WITH FANS
CALLUM DAVIDSON has told Steve Clarke that Shaun Rooney can be a Hampden hero for Scotland, not just St Johnstone. The wing-back headed home Sunday’s winner as Saints saw off Livingston 1-0 at the National Stadium to lift their first League Cup. Rooney also scored in the club’s two knockout games before a showpiece in which he walked away as man of the match.
And McDiarmid Park boss Davidson, who won 19 Scotland caps, reckons