McCoist not surprised by Lennon departure
Ally McCoist was not surprised that Neil Lennon resigned as Celtic manager after seeing the Parkhead club endure “one disaster after another”.
The Northern Irishman, who returned to Celtic for a second stint in charge after Brendan Rodgers left to take over at Leicester in February 2019, had been under pressure for most of the season as the ‘nine in a row’ Scottish Premiership champions were knocked out of Europe and the Bet fred Cup while slip ping well adrift of Rangers in the league.
Celtic are 18 points behind their Old Firm rivals and a 1-0 defeat to Ross County in Dingwall on Sunday night left Steven Gerrard’s men just seven points away from their first title in a decade.
McCoist, who played for Rangers between 1983 and 1998 before a spell as manager between 2011 and 2014, told talkSPORT: “The first thing I say is, hopefully he can get some sanity back in his life and go and enjoy himself and relax with his family for a period.
“That’s the one thing, looking at Neil, that he needs and wants – so that’s the most important thing. But in terms of the decision itself, I’ m not overly surprised at all. Neil, being the manager, is obviously one of them but the people above him as well, and indeed the players have to shoulder a lot of the responsibility.”
Former Celtic striker John Hart son believes former team mate Lennon’ s resignation is the “best outcome” for the club. The 45-year-old, who played for the Hoops between 2001 and 2006, posted on Twitter:“Neil Lennon can be proud of his achievements both as a player, coach and manager of Celtic. I’ m not surprised he has resigned but feel it’s the best outcome for Celtic.”