Strachan linked with Celtic return

Gordon Strachan is the favourite to be named Celtic ’s next permanent manager. The Hoops’ shock Betfred Cup loss to Ross County on Sunday sparked a protest against current boss Neil Lennon and his players outside Celtic Park.

Pressure is mounting on the Pa r k h e a d club ’s hierarchy to make a change, with Rangers threatening to kill off their hopes of a record 10 th consecutive league title.

And Gordon Strachan now leads the betting with two bookmakers to leave his player development post at Dens Park and return for a second spell as Celtic boss, should the role become available.

Betfair and Paddy Power both have Strachan as 6- 4 favourite to replace Lennon, with former Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe on his coattails at 5-2.

Strachan has previously spoken of his work with

Dundee as a “labour of love”.

“I’m absolutely loving it,” he told Graham Spiers’ Press Box podcast in October.

“We have to prepare players. The mantra at Dundee now is: The player. How do we make the player better? Not the system, not the back four.

“We can do that, but unless you make the player technically good and incredibly fit then whatever system you’ve got’s not going to work because you will make mistakes.

“Us, in Scotland, we get (the ball) and because we lack the ability and belief in beating players and shielding it, we will play balls first time – 50/50 passes – and we’ ll go: ‘Unlucky,’ as coaches.

“No. It’s not unlucky. It’s because you’re scared to be engaged with somebody coming at you. We’ve got to try and give everybody at Dundee the ability to beat people.”

After Celtic’s Betfred Cup hopes were ended on Sunday, under fire boss Lennon insisted he has no intention of walking away from his job.

And asked whether he would understand if the club’s board decided to remove him, he said: “No, I think it’s too soon for that. We have lost one trophy, that’s gone. Our priority is the league, it always is, every time we come into a season.

“We are out of Europe, so it’s not been great, but there’s plenty of time to turn it around. But it’s all right me saying that, we have to show it with action now.

“I think I should get more time at it but, if not, then so be it.”

M id f ie lde r Ryan Christie’s press conference was cut short as Celtic officials rushed to get him and his team-mates out of the stadium as a police helicopter circled over the protesters.

Before he was ushered away, Christie said: “I think the most important thing that everybody needs to know is that we still care.

“When you go on a run l ike th i s , peop le automatically say ‘ they don’t care for the club’ or ‘ they’re not trying their best’, whereas every single person out on that pitch was absolutely desperate to get a result to put things right.

“T hat ’s why it is so frustrating when people do say that we’re not caring or we’re not trying our best.

“Nobody would be at this club or would have done so well in their professional career if they didn’t have that attitude going into every single game.

“But it’s hard, everyone is hurting. We hurt as much as them.

“It must be horrendous for them sitting at home watching us, the team they love to see win every week.

“It’s been near perfection over the last however many years, so when a run like this comes along it is a real shock to the system.”

FORMER BOSS: Gordon Strachan looks on from the sidelines during his four-year spell as Celtic manager.