DOWN TO A FINE ART 19
Lennon brush strokes have transformed Celtic’s raw canvas into something resembling a masterpiece
THERE is always another challenge, a fresh obstacle to be overcome, a new and interesting way to push the envelope.
In sport, as in any other artistic pursuit, the search for absolute perfection is never-ending.
Even amid the most frenetic drive for ever-greater triumphs and higher honours, however, there must be a time to sit back and applaud something truly deserving of wider appreciation.
Between now and their pilgrimage to the Eternal City later this week, the thousands upon thousands of Celtic fans making the journey to Rome should pause for reflection on the hand that fate has dealt them.
And give thanks to whatever god they worship for the good fortune smiling down upon their club.
All those gripes and moans about Neil Lennon lacking the ‘glamour’ of Brendan Rodgers? File them alongside the whispers of discontent about the continued lack of ‘marquee’ signings.
Lennon hasn’t just built on the work done by his predecessor. He has re-energised a squad in need of some oomph, bringing extra impetus through force of personality, quality of coaching and the acquisition of genuinely exciting talents.
When it all comes together in the kind of syncopated rhythm witnessed at Hampden on Saturday night, the end result is something approaching a masterpiece.
Against a Hibs side offering spirited but limited resistance — Paul Heckingbottom’s pick-n-mix squad now standing as the living embodiment of what happens when mass recruitment goes wrong — Lennon’s Celtic were beyond remarkable. They were unplayable.
And the spread of players making telling contributions — on-loan Southampton winger Mohamed Elyounoussi possibly just edging veteran skipper Scott Brown for man-of-the match honours on a day when several in Hoops merited special mention — says something about the job done by Lennon.
The best football managers are part-coach, part-alchemist. At the moment, everything L e n n o n touches is turning to silverware.
Elyounoussi’s performance would have been magnificent even without his two goals and two assists.
The same goes for Brown, although the focus obviously fell on his first two-goal display since December 2014.
Special mention must go, meanwhile, to a striker who didn’t get on the scoresheet. Singling out Odsonne Edouard for praise, Lennon said: ‘He’s a joy to watch.
‘He just comes to life all of a sudden; he has that laconic style and then he bursts into life.
‘He’s got these beautiful feet where he just dances past people. He picked the right pass a couple of times. He was unlucky not to score himself. He led the line brilliantly. At 21, he is fantastic to watch. And he must be fantastic to play with.’
Asked if the Frenchman brings more than goals, Lennon replied: ‘He’s shown that for a long time now. His all-round game is getting better and better.
‘He has added a volume of goals this season and is well on his way to getting a really good notch-up by the end of the season. ‘But with what he is bringing to his team and his link-up, he is brilliantly complementing Elyounoussi and James Forrest — and Ryan Christie and Tom Rogic.’
Celtic’s multiple threats were in evidence from the outset, with Paul Hanlon lucky not to be penalised for handball in the box just before the champions took the lead.
Elyounoussi’s opener from a Forrest cross, with Edouard also lurking, came after 17 minutes.
Four minutes later, Celtic went two up when Edouard — offside but not flagged by Douglas Ross — raced onto a Christopher Jullien pass and dinked the ball over keeper Chris Maxwell for Callum McGregor to score from close range.
Credit Hibs for sticking to their task, Melker Hallberg grabbing a goal back after capitalising on Boli Bolingoli’s mistake after 36 minutes.
But Celtic’s third just before half-time, Edouard again showing dazzling feet before squaring for Elyounoussi’s second at the end of a sweeping move, effectively killed the game.
Maxwell’s blunder, dropping an Elyounoussi corner on to the head of Jullien, allowed Brown to score from close range early in the second half.
Although Flo Kamberi sent a header beyond Fraser Forster to make it 4-2 heading into the final half-hour, Hibs never looked like launching a proper fightback.
The gulf in ability and mobility was summed up by one McGregor turn that left Josh
Vela doing the old-man-at-fives spin-and-chase. Few could get close to Celtic’s key men.
Scott Allan probably thought he had put a dent in Brown when he caught him in the face with a flailing arm in the closing moments.
Within seconds, the veteran was rushing upfield to play a give-and-go with Elyounoussi and finish — at the second attempt — beyond Maxwell for Celtic’s fifth.
Lennon’s team did all of this while resting Christie, who only came on for Rogic after 79 minutes.
They did it with Jullien clearly suffering from a head knock inflicted by Christian Doidge in the opening minutes. With Jeremie Frimpong looking like the best of three very good right-backs signed this summer. And with Jonny Hayes in electrifying form as a half-time replacement for left-back Boli Bolingoli, now a doubt for the Lazio game.
‘I’m proud of them all,’ said
Lennon. ‘The new guys coming in have settled in brilliantly now, the players who have been here — whether it be with myself first time, Ronny (Deila) or Brendan — I’m proud of them all. They’re a brilliant group.
‘With the guys who aren’t playing every week, you are just trying to keep them motivated.
‘And, when you see the team playing that way, if you’re on the outside looking in, you might want a piece of it instead of being disappointed or chucking it.
‘You think: “I’d like to play in that team. I’d like to be a part of that”. So that’s what we’re trying to maintain. We haven’t used a huge amount of players but we have rotated in twos and threes because of the bulk of the games coming up and the ones we’ve had so far.
‘They have done some special things — and have the capability to go on and do even more special things. I’m really enjoying managing them. They’re a brilliant bunch. ‘We’ll have a few dips along the way but they’re in a really good place at the minute.
‘We’re not getting carried away. But we’re enjoying watching them play.’
For Lennon, the bonus of extending Celtic’s winning cup run to 30 games would be in lifting the League Cup for the first time as a manager.
‘I’ve still not won it yet,’ he cautioned, when prodded on the one glaring absence from his coaching CV.
‘Keeping this run going in the cup competitions is driving me.
‘It’s about the players, not about me. It’s about their records and what it means for the club.’
The plan for Lennon and his staff yesterday was to relax and watch the second semi; consider it advance homework ahead of next month’s final. To be honest, within an hour of the final whistle on Saturday, the Celtic boss was already thinking about Thursday’s game at the Stadio Olimpico.
For those always seeking out the next great adventure, admiration for a job well done — even a masterly ensemble piece containing flashes of genuine genius — has to be squeezed into a pretty narrow window of opportunity.
HIBERNIAN (4-2-3-1): Maxwell 5; James 4, Jackson 5, Hanlon 5, Stevenson 6; Vela 3 (Kamberi 46), Hallberg 6; Mallan 5, Allan 5, Horgan 5 (Slivka 68); Doidge 5 (Boyle 76). Subs not used: Marciano, Whittaker, Newell, Naismith. Booked: Doidge, Stevenson. CELTIC (4-2-3-1): Forster 6; Frimpong 7, Jullien 7, Ajer 6, Bolingoli 6 (Hayes 46); Brown 8, McGregor 8; Forrest 7 (Elhamed 67), Rogic 7 (Christie 79), Elyounoussi 8; Edouard 8. Subs (not used): Gordon, Bitton, Johnston, Ntcham. Man of the match: Mohamed Elyounoussi. Referee: Bobby Madden. Attendance: 46,872.