NEIL Lennon will leave it to Scott Brown to police himself during games but admitted he will take action if the captain lets himself down again in Celtic colours.

Lennon said he had not seen footage of the midweek incident in which Brown gave Vegard Forren a sly kick during Scotland's friendly against Norway. The incident went unpunished but closely resembled the kick at Barcelona's Neymar which earned Brown a three-game Champions League suspension.

Lennon said he did not want his captain to lose the "devilment" which characterises his play and would not be speaking to him about discipline because of what happened in Molde. But the Celtic manager stressed that he would come down on Brown if acts of petulance become a frequent aspect of his play.

"What happened in midweek wasn't my issue," said Lennon ahead of this afternoon's match against Aberdeen at Celtic Park. "If it happens again, it will be my issue, if he does it with Celtic. Is it happening too often? I can't comment on the Scotland incident. One, I didn't see it, and it's between him and Gordon [Strachan, the Scotland manager] to talk about. I've already spoken about the Barcelona thing and he knows where I stand on it. I'm expecting him to lead the team as he always does.

"There are times when you get sent off and it's harsh, but anything that's over the top or unnecessary I make it pretty clear to the players that I don't want to see that again because we pride ourselves on team discipline. I think our record over the years would prove that.

"It is unnecessary and that is something he has to learn himself. I can tell him a hundred thousand times not to do it but he has to find that self-control. He is on top of his game but he just likes giving people wee reminders that he is there. If it is within the laws of the game and he is trying to impose himself on an opponent I haven't got a problem with it.

"We're talking about Scott here but we also saw a Ronaldo headbutt [on Celtic and Sweden full-back Mikael Lustig]. Which is more sinister? Even the Scott kick on Neymar, if you want to call it that, is that more sinister than what Ronaldo did to Lustig? I'm not sure. So even the greatest player, or one of the greatest players in world football at the minute, is prone to losing his temper now and again or losing his self-control. So I'm not here to bang on about Brownie. If it remains a factor in his game from here-on-in then I will deal with it, but at the minute, I don't need to.

"It's not for me to balance it, it is for him. I don't want to lose that devil in him because it is part of his make-up. It is an important part of his make-up. If you take that away then you end up with a robot. He has that drive and that will to win and sometimes it does spill over. Some top players have that. He just needs to pick and choose his moments and if he has done something outwith the game, make sure he doesn't get caught."

Lennon bristled about comments made by the new Australia manager Ange Postecoglou saying the Celtic midfielder Tom Rogic should go out on loan to get match fit. Rogic has made only six appearances this season and Postecoglou, who picked him for Australia in midweek, told a football podcast that a loan would be good for him, perhaps to former national manager Graham Arnold's club side Vegalta Sendai in the Japanese J-League.

"I don't need other managers to tell me how to manage my players, and certainly not to come out in public about it," said Lennon. "If he is concerned about Tom's future, then he can pick up the phone and speak to me and not try to dictate where Tom should go and play his football. We paid money for him, we pay his wages, I manage him, I do the best I can with him at the minute.

"If he feels that, for his World Cup place, he has to go on loan, then I can't decide on that. I have to think about Celtic first and foremost. I've got to think about Tom as well obviously, but he's here with us and he's very much part of our squad. He will play between now and January that's for sure."