Furious Lennon takes aim at Ross for ‘disrespectful’ criticism
Neil Lennon has accused Maurice Ross of “lacking” in “professional standards”, “etiquette” and “respect” in calling out the Motherwell coach over “abysmal” comments he made about Celtic on BBC Sport sound last Sunday.
And Lennon revealed that Fir Park manager Stephen Robinson had been in touch to apologise for the remarks made by the member of his backroom staff.
Ross, the former R angers defender has already found himself in hot water with St Mirren’s general manag - er Tony Fitzpatrick over his suggestion that clubs could play the Covid-19 regulations in order to have games postponed if under-strengthed – on the back of a string of positive cases that prevented the Paisley club being able to fulfil their fixture against Motherwell on Saturday.
Now Ross has raised the hackles of Lennon, too, over his claims on the same pro - gram me that the starting XI Lennon fielded in the 2- 0 defeat by Steven Gerrard’s men on Saturday “was probably the weakest I’ve seen from them in 20 years”. He also said Celtic’s 3-5-2 formation “played into Rangers’ hands”.
Ross also questioned why Leigh Griffith sand Al bi an Ajeti were only able to feature as second-half substitutes in the derby, appearing to overlook the injuries both have suffered in the early par t of the campaign.
“Griffiths, struggling for fitness? How long does he take to get fit, that boy Ajeti?” Ross said. “It takes you six weeks to get fully fit, but pre-season is normally four weeks and we are four months into it now. How can you not be fit? What are you doing?" He also took issue with the fact Scott Brown required to “drop in to take the ball off a £40,000-a-week [centre-back]” in a reference to onloan Shane Duffy.
The Celtic manager was withering over such criticism having been delivered by a fellow coach in the Scottish game. “There is a professional standard, a professional etiquette, a professional respect and I think Maurice was lacking in all three of those,” said Lennon.
“I was surprised and very disappointed. Stephen Robinson contacted me to apologise profusely. He found it embarrassing. I think Mother well have really good people there and they found it embarrassing as well. And to be honest with you I found the comments embarrassing for Maurice, rather than for anyone else. It’s on him. Stephen[ was pretty unhappy] and sometimes you are guilty by association but it’s nothing to do with him.
“He [Ross] is working, he’s an employee of another Premiership team and I don’t think he should be making any comment at all on any other team or any other players. The comments, in particular, on Ajeti, on Griffiths, on the money that Shane Duffy may or may not be on, were pretty abysmal.”
Lennon was asked if he felt that Ross should follow Robinson in offering the Celtic manager an apology. He replied: “I don’t think he owes me an apology, I think he owes my players an apology, I think he owes my coaching staff an apology and I think he owes my club an apology. I[ also] think he owes his own club, that employs him, an apology.”
The target placed on Neil Lennon’s back by a Celtic support vicious in their sniping since Saturday’ s derby defeat will be worn dutifully by the Irishman.
The Celtic manager is well aware the bucks tops with him, and the 49- year-old refuses to shift that on to his under-performing squad.
The Scottish champions have the unenviable task of facing AC Milan at home in the Europa League as they seek to respond from the grim showing against Rangers.
Lennon won’t have Covid-19 sufferers Odsonne Edouard - Aberdeen on Sunday offering a possible return for the striker - Nir Bitton or Hatem Abd Elhamed at his disposal for a daunting assignment that Ryan Christie is back for.
However, the Celtic manager won’t flinch as he prepares for Milan.
“You have to take it,” he said of the frightening fall-out from the weekend. “We were bitterly disappointed and we’re hurting.
"We’re looking for a positive reaction and know we can play better. Ultimately the responsibility is on me. I pick the team and the formation. It didn’t work [on Saturday]. But I have utter belief in these players.
"They’ ve done amazing things over the last four or five years. I’m convinced they’ll continue to do so. I can’t any more of what the players have given me in my time since coming back into the club [in February 2019]. It’s been sort of perfect.
"OK, the Champions League exit was a major disappointment to us but that’s some - thing we have to get over. At the weekend that was our second defeat to Rangers in a row. We could and should have played better.
"But cannot let one bad performance and one defeat rankle with us.
“We’re not happy with the performance levels since basically the star t of the season. We had one really good game where we flowed and that was against Hibs.
"The other ones, while I wouldn’t say a struggle as we dominated, didn’t see us as penetrating or fluid as we can be.
"But it’s down to me to rectify that and find the answers.
"We talk and have dialogue with the players and they’re a brilliant bunch to work with. They need a bit of protection as well and that’s what I’m there for.”
Lennon doesn’ t give headroom to whether he ought to have more credit in the bank following fo ur straight trophies in the past year-and-ahalf - a run has supplied him with the best win rate of any managerial spell in the club’s history.
The 10- in-a-row quest appears to be blinding the Celtic faithful to reason.
“I don’t buy into the praise when it comes too much – and I don’t buy into the criticism however vicious or personal,” he said.
“I don’t accept it, I don’t agree with it, but I keep my counsel.
"I think it’s important to keep your professional dignity and your professional integrity intact. It doesn’t matter how people perceive me.
"The important thing is the club, the important thing is the team, the important thing is the players. I need to get that right on a consistent basis.
"I think we’ve done prett y well since we came back in, but I don’t ask for any favours from anyone. That’s just the nature of how this season is going to be.”
Meanwhile, defender Diego Laxalt says there is no front a b o u t t h e s e l f - p r o c l a i m e d
iconic frontman Zlatan Ibrahimovic who will be leading the line for AC Milan at Celtic Park in the clubs’ Europa League opener.
The on-loan San Siro defender, who will face his parent club in his second game for the S cottish champions, insists the supreme Swedish 39-yearold is as much the showman behind the scenes as he in the public eye.
“In real life, Zlatan is exactly the way you see him,” said the Urguayan.
“He’s got a fantastic personality but he’s a class player as well. You can see that in the long career he’s had. I could talk all night about Zlatan...”
He won’t talk, though, about any tips he will give those in Celtic colours about how to handle the veteran who netted a double to give his team a 2-1 victor y over city rivals Milan on Saturday.
"These are the sort of things you keep inside the dressing room,” Laxalt said. “But you would treat him like any other players because we have to defend well.
"But it’s something I will discuss with my team-mates.”
Laxalt proved equally reticent on whether he would by providing some insider information to Neil Lennon for the clash that follows on from the dispiriting derby defeat at the weekend-despite the Celtic manager stating last week he would be “leaning” on the 27-year-old.
“Milan have got a great squad who work well together – but the manager doesn’t need me to tell him that,” he said, diplomatically.
“There is a really good staff here at Celtic with the manager and the coaches, and they know what they are doing.
"They will have us ready for the game.”
Laxalt doesn’t want to dwell on what could be considered the awkward situation of turning out against the club he just left a fort night ago ... and to which he will return at the end of this season.
"I try not to think about it and I have just prepared for it like it’s any other game,” he said.
“It’s not something I will be thinking about, during the game anyway. It might seem a bit weird afterwards having played against my old team but I am at Celtic and will be treating them like a normal opponent.”