LENNON’S NOTE OF CAUTION

Celtic boss warns of overconfidence as plans are laid for a play-off in Prague

EUROPEAN qualifiers come around so thick and fast in the summer that it can be a bad time of year for the superstitious. If football managers are wary of making rash assumptions, their clubs simply cannot afford the luxury of holding back, looking to bide their time over travel plans.

After all, chartered planes have to be sourced with tickets and visas for the next venue reserved. Just in case.

Indeed, mentally, Celtic and their supporters are already planning ahead for swatting Cluj aside tonight and securing a Champions League play-off round tie against Slavia Prague.

Say it like that and it sounds easy. What’s more, it is hard to fault the optimism.

Last week, a James Forrest strike removed some of the tension from the tie, securing a useful away goal in a 1-1 draw in Romania. In front of a 60,000 crowd, Scotland’s champions are entitled to fancy their chances.

After all, they’ve scored 25 goals in seven games already and Neil Lennon is first to admit they’re in a good place.

But the manager will stick the lucky white heather in his tracksuit pocket tonight anyway. He knows how quickly football can kick sand in a man’s face.

‘It can flip very quickly, so we take nothing for granted,’ said Lennon. ‘We’re delighted with the way we’ve played and the goals, obviously.

‘We look a threat and we’re making good chances, so we look to do the same again but we’re mindful of keeping a clean sheet.’

Fuelling the caution is the knowledge that the Romanian champions held a 1-0 lead over Maccabi Tel Aviv after the home game of the first leg.

They went through after a 2-2 draw in Israel and the same scoreline would consign Celtic to a Europa League play-off, most likely against AIK Stockholm.

Asked how wary he is of a slip or overconfidence, Lennon admitted: ‘Very. They scored those two goals against Maccabi away, which isn’t an easy thing to do.

‘They qualified pretty well out of that round, so they can score. They rested the team again at the weekend, so there will be a freshness to them and it will mean a lot to them, as it does to us.

‘We’re looking forward to the game and, obviously, at Celtic Park, we’re looking to strike home that advantage. It’s a balance.

‘The goals give you confidence but you can’t be overconfident. There was enough in the game last week for me to think we can score and hurt them when we get the ball into certain areas.

‘That gives me a lot of encouragement going into this game. We look like we concede, too, but the onus is on us to take the game to them as much as we can.’

Big clubs can’t help themselves, of course. Accustomed to winning games and trophies, the air of entitlement around Celtic supporters is hard to miss these days.

They take things for granted because many of the younger fans have never known anything else.

It’s a syndrome which extends to players as well as games. Many fans still can’t believe Kieran Tierney left for Arsenal and with Brendan Rodgers keen to take Callum McGregor to Leicester City, Lennon believes supporters should enjoy some of his players while they have them.

McGregor and James Forrest are neither demonstrative nor showy. Yet both have become huge players for Celtic without anyone noticing.

‘They are so consistent and, again, they are two players that you don’t take for granted,’ said the manager.

‘They play that well all the time that you sort of take them for granted after a while and you can’t do that, you just can’t.

‘You’re almost shocked if they have an off day. That’s how good their consistency is.

‘They are two players who are very, very important to us, particularly this season as they have been in the past. They are fine examples for the rest. Kris Ajer has real leadership qualities and he’s showing that as well.

‘Of course, you’ve got Scott Brown and I think Jozo Simunovic has a bit about him. I think they are a good bunch. I think the mentality of the group is good.’

Technically, they’re not bad either. Yet Lennon knows his squad is far from the finished article.

If time and money permits, he still hopes to sign a left-back, right-back, wide man and striker before September 2. Yet Celtic are in a better place, in terms of their attacking options, than they were this time last year when Rodgers was at war with the board and Moussa Dembele was agitating for a move to Lyon.

Speaking before the first game in Romania, Cluj manager Dan Petrescu recognised the attacking prowess of the Scottish champions. Lennon expects the visitors to be ‘cagey’ tonight and hit on the break, as they did for the opening goal last week.

Despite a hairy eight minutes, however, the Parkhead side believed in themselves.

‘We try to get the ball into forward areas a little bit quicker, shoot more and shoot quicker,’ continued Lennon. ‘Sometimes, we were looking for the perfect goal but every goal is perfect in its own way.

‘We’re getting that from Ryan (Christie). James is pitching in and Callum’s got a couple already. The strikers are in good form.

‘We don’t take what Leigh Griffiths does for granted because it’s a natural talent that he has, plus Odsonne Edouard has been in fantastic form in the last couple of games.

‘We’re just trying to keep them bubbling along.

‘We know the significance of the game.’