Lennon puts faith in experience of Barkas for Old Firm crunch
Celtic manager Neil Lennon sought to keep a lid on expectancy over his team’s renaissance going into their potentially decisive derby on Saturday in the aftermath of their last night’ s dismantling of Dundee United.
Despite a sixth straight win following a ruinous run of two wins in 12, the Irishman is respectful of the dangers posed by a Rangers side that have won 19 and drawn two of their 21 Premiership games to establish a 16-point lead lead.
As the Irishman confirmed he will start keeper Vasilis Barkas against Rangers because of the 26-year-old Greek international’s experience, and that he hasn’t ruled out Christopher Jullien despite the Frenchman being forced off with a knee problem sustained when he clattered it against the post, he preached caution.
“Our confidence is good but we’re not getting carried away,” Lennon said. “It’s a tough game for us. R angers are in great form and they have been all season. It’s a great challenge for us but we’re starting to find good consistency as well and I want to take that into the game on Saturday.”
Bark as, rather than 22- yearold keeper Con or Hazard, can be key to that outcome, believes Lennon, who restored the £4.5m summer signing following a month out.
“We’ve got big games coming up and I want Vasilis to play,” the Celtic manager said. “He’s come in as number one I think Conor’s done very well but he’s still very fledgling in his career. It would be a big call to put him into a game of this magnitude. So, I want to go back to experience. Vasilis hasn’t shown us what he’ s all about but he’s capable of doing that. So I thought it was important to give him a game before.”
Jullien failing to recover to play in the derby would be “a big blow” conceded Lennon. “We’ll have to assess him over the next couple of days,” he said. “But again we’ve got [Nir] Bitton, we’ve got [Shane] Duffy. We’re okay in terms of cover but Christopher’s a big game player and we’d like him fit if possible. It’s quite a heavy one. There’s a bit of swelling, but I’m not ruling him out or in.”
The course of this season never seems to run entirely smoothly for Celtic.
Their scintillating 3- 0 victory over Dundee United was hall marked by all manner of excellence. So much so, it would have been the perfect set-up for the acid test of Saturday’s derby trip to Ibrox where they dare not be burned if they are to retain any hopes of clawing back a 16-point deficit. But, that is, for the loss of Christopher Jullien to a nasty-looking knee injury in the 49 th minute that was caused by him colliding with the upright when sliding in to knock off the line a goalbound effort from Mark Mcnulty.
Neil Lennon turned to Nir Bitton to replace the Frenchman, who received treatment for a full three minutes before being carried off the field to be given further lengthy attention before being removed on a stretcher. Jullien’s participation in the derby must then be placed in serious doubt. A makeshift defence – with auxiliary centre-back Bit ton appearing to be preferred to Shane Duffy – is not what Lennon would want to field in so crucial an encounter.
Yet, the Celtic manager will draw a degree of comfort from a fourth straight clean sheet, which briefly looked under threat when Jullien was lost. And more than that, he will believe that Rangers can be themselves placed under defensive pressure because of the energy and vitality produced by his men from middle to front once more.
With the win a sixth straight success for Celtic, the Scottish champions’ form going into a clash where they need it most is as sound as it has been in this troubled ten-in-a-row campaign. They are unrec -
ognisable from the side that squeaked a draw at home to St Johnstone only a month ago, a result that then had them plumbing the depths in establishing a sequence of only two wins in 12 outings. They will feel that their Rangers assignment is coming at the right time since they have rarely displayed as relentless a period of energy and enterprise as they crafted in the opening period against the Tannadice men.
Is mail aS oroandD avid Turnbull were once more the driving forces that provided the core of their command as the diamond midfield once more spark led. And, with the crowding out of strikers Odsonne Edouard and Leigh Gr if fiths, also demonstrated their ability to puncture massed defences. Across the 90 minutes, Celtic must have fashioned a dozen stonking goal scoring opportunities.
The two strikes they served up in the first half weren’t among the most obvious, but showed they have many means to make teams suffer.
Soro has served up just about everything since becoming his team’ s scavenging metronome. Ago al had been the only absentee, but he c orrected that in the 23rd minute when, 25 yards out and with the visitors retreating, he unleashed in a bending biff that seemed to bedazzle Benjamin Siegrist.
The advantage was doubled in similar fashion though there was far less unexpected about Turnbull successfully taking aim, with his edge-ofthe-box low drive that found the target in off the far post his third goal in as many matches. Celtic should have had a hat-load, and Edouard should have been donning the marksman role. The ball didn’t stick
for the Frenchman, though, until his dovetailing with Griffiths paid dividends in the 73rd minute with the Scotland international sending him in on goal with a delightful lob to allow Edouard to provide a chipped finish.
It was the end of an afternoon that began in time-honoured fashion for Celtic’s online community. As is wont to happen with any decision that Lennon makes, this faction were all of afro th when the team was announced on account of the inclusion of Vasilis Barkas. Or, more pointedly, the decision to drop Conor Hazard to restore the jittery Greek goalkeeper.
Bark as has endured a desperate five months following his £4.5 million move from AEK Athens. Unable to fashion crucial saves, there appeared a capacity for calamity around him – more so than by him – in his two spells in the
side that both ended with Lennon deciding he required to take him out of the firing line.
Here stored him against United with the admission that, despite 22-year-old Hazard keeping goal for five successes – which included his pivotal shoot-out saves in the
Scottish Cup final win–and three straight clean sheets, he wasn’t ready to be Celtic’s No.1. The role he said that Barkas had been bought for.
Such was the keep-ball that the Parkhead side were able play in a vibrant opening period, frankly Lennon would have been able to play himself in goal without any problems ensuing. United did though have a flurry in the second period with two glaring opportunities. It was wastefulness from Mcnult y and Jullien’s courage, and a wild skier from Lawrence Shankland, rather than any Barkas endeavours, that allowed the Greek to enjoy a rare clean sheet. The Celtic boss is certain to select Barkas for Ibrox. It will surely be a very different afternoon for him, but he is now playing behind a very different proposition of a Celtic team. Celtic: Barkas; Frimpong, Ajer, Jullien (Bitton 51), Laxalt; Christie, Soro (Brown 80), Mcgregor; Turnbull (Rogic 77); Edouard (Elyounoussi 80), Griffiths (Ajeti 77). Substitutes: Hazard, Taylor, Duffy, Johnston. Dundee Utd: Siegrist, Smith (Robson 83), Connolly, Reynolds, Robson (Sproule 83), Clark, Edwards, Harkes, Pawlett (Powers 73); Shankland (Mcmullan 68), Mcnulty. Substitutes: Deniz, Fotheringham, Appere, Neilson, Hutchinson.
Referee: Willie Collum