FASTEN your seatbelts. Neil Lennon is back in the Celtic hot-seat.

Even by the turbulent standards of this 47-year-old from Lurgan, the last 24 hours have been tumultuous. If Celtic were on cruise control under Brendan Rodgers, there was surprise in some quarters yesterday that his Northern Irish countryman should be the safe pair of hands parachuted in by Peter Lawwell to steady the ship after the man at the helm jumped ship for Leicester City.

It is a triumphant return indeed for the man who racked up two league titles, five trophies in all and even managed to beat Barcelona in his previous stint at Parkhead. But if Lennon's recent managerial history is anything to go by, everyone might also be in for a bumpy old ride.

READ MORE: Stewart Fisher: Is Leicester City a step up for Brendan Rodgers?

There have been times during the five years since the Northern Irishman brought the curtain down on a successful first stint at Celtic that a second coming at the club seemed well-nigh inevitable. For all the low-level grumbles and frustrations over transfer kitties and the like, it was an idea which never really went away - in the minds of the key protagonists as much as the fans.

“I left on very good terms with the board and Peter and Mr Desmond,” said Lennon during what turned into a challenging time at Bolton Wanderers. “And we did say that if ever the opportunity came up again further down the line, if things were going well for both of us, I would have no hesitation in coming back.”

A victim of circumstance down at fiscally-strapped Bolton, it should also be stated beyond doubt that Lennon’s two-and-a-bit years at Easter Road proved once again that he is a very capable football manager. He won a league title there, racked up a record points haul, and built a team capable of playing engaging football.

READ MORE: Chris Sutton reacts as Brendan Rodgers leaves Celtic

His players seemed to share the same big game temperament as their manager: Easter Road wins in each of the last two seasons proves that, along with Steve Clarke’s Kilmarnock, his Hibs team were as capable as anyone when it comes stepping up to the plate and going toe-to-toe with the Premiership champions.

Yet, at other points in the journey, the prospect of Lennon rocking up again at Lennoxtown seemed like the most outlandish thing in the world. Life under him was certainly never dull. The only question was whether Lawwell and co needed all the hassle.

The Northern Irishman remained a lightning rod for controversy – not to mention a target for abuse, sometimes of a sectarian nature, from opposition fans. A rather unseemly set-to with Morton manager Jim Duffy, after which the former Dundee manager had to refute the suggestion that he had offered Lennon ‘a square go’, was just the start of it. When he was struck by a coin at a goalless Edinburgh derby in October 2018, he called the Hearts fans out for 'anti Catholic' racism said he may consider his position at the club.

READ MORE: Steven Gerrard ‘not surprised’ Brendan Rodgers is leaving Celtic

Fast forward to May 2018 and another rollercoaster week in the life of this 43-year-old from Lurgan. When a 2-1 Hearts win in the Edinburgh derby ended his hopes of finishing second, Lennon said it wasn’t up to his standards and again said he was considering his future. Yet days later he was back, running onto the field towards the Rangers fans mimicking an aeroplane after a riotous 5-5 draw on the last day of the season. It was typical Lennon.

This season has been more of the same, as the Northern Irishman’s demeanour seemed to fluctuate on the sidelines and his team’s performances with it. With results up and down, as the season wore on, media duties would often be left to his assistant Garry Parker, as relations seemed to fluctuate with both his own dressing room and the boardroom.

When he departed in typically dramatic fashion - at first suspended amid talk of heated exchanges with certain players, before lawyers clarified that no misconduct had taken place – the world wondered where exactly Lennon would end up next. Few expected him to walk into one of the biggest and best jobs in Scotland within a month.

Yet here he is, being told yesterday to make his way to Lennoxtown to finalise the contractual arrangements yesterday before being announced as caretaker manager – at first until the end of the season.

READ MORE: Gordon Strachan: Brendan Rodgers could have landed a bigger club than Leicester

Who knows? If it goes as well as his first one did, he might even earn the chance to become the club’s new permanent boss. Few, after all, expected him to make the success of himself that he did back when inheriting the job in 2010, a period which saw him survive a Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Ross County to make the position his own.

By comparison, his demands this time around seem prosaic. See out the league campaign – perhaps masterminding an Old Firm victory or two – and deliver the Scottish Cup and Celtic could even be celebrating their first treble under Lennon’s watch. There would be few at the club if that came to pass who would deprive him the opportunity to lead Celtic to what would be a historic ten top flight titles in a row.

READ MORE: The highs and lows of Brendan Rodgers' time at Celtic

In the short term, the benefits are obvious. He knows many of the players, knows the demands, knows how the club operates, and knows the league like the back of his hand.

And what a start it is. John Kennedy, and not Lennon, is expected to be in charge tomorrow night at Tynecastle, but this weekend it is his former club Hibs - and Flo Kamberi - in the Scottish Cup quarter finals. Everyone should fasten your seatbelts all right. Because Neil Lennon is back in the Celtic hotseat.