Puzzle over Griffiths but harsh truth is he must deliver

IN A summer of perplexing tales, focused largely on the fact Dundee secretary Eric Drysdale seems insistent on casting votes on key issues with an old ZX Spectrum computer and an internet connection powered by a gerbil on a wheel, the miraculous return to fitness of Leigh Griffiths has added to the air of befuddlement.

First up he is left at home as Celtic go down in a friendly at Paris SaintGermain after returning from lockdown like Tubby Scoffalot.

Then, only days later, manager Neil Lennon is telling everyone the striker has suddenly got himself into ‘great condition’.

Sports science can work wonders these days, for sure, but such progress in such limited time?

Celtic offered Griffiths valuable support during a period of depression, but the harsh nature of the game he’s in is now knocking at the door.

Maybe the exHibs man (right), about to turn 30, is in formidable shape.

Maybe Lennon was just backpedalling because he felt he’d been a little too critical of the player initially. How regularly he is used in the coming weeks will be a guide. Mental health is a subject very much in vogue and everyone has to be seen to handle it delicately. But football is football. And those within it will always be measured on delivering results in the end.

Griffiths, with two years left on his deal, is being paid a fortune to be fit and available. In that environment, these continuing issues over his physical conditioning cannot be excused.

It would be a shame if he is coming to the end at Parkhead, a talented finisher you sense could have achieved more, but that’s the way it is starting to look.

Certainly, Patryk Klimala would be entitled to kick up merry hell if the Scotland striker is still above him in the pecking order when Celtic’s season gets underway today.

Amid everything that has been going on with Griffiths, Lennon has an obligation to be fair to him too.