NEIL Lennon last night stressed there is still no guarantee he will be appointed Celtic manager at the end of the season - despite leading the Parkhead club to within 90 minutes of a historic treble treble.
Lennon, who took over from Brendan Rodgers on an interim basis back in February, was delighted to see his side defeat Aberdeen 3-0 in the William Hill Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden yesterday.
The Northern Irishman revealed that Dermot Desmond, the Scottish champions’ major shareholder, had personally dismissed recent stories linking the Glasgow club with high-profile coaches in a discussion with him over the weekend.
However, he revealed that what happens at the end of the 2018/19 campaign remains uncertain even though he is undefeated in eight games since taking over temporarily and is poised to lead Celtic to their eighth consecutive Ladbrokes Premiership title in the next fortnight.
“It was highly pressured today,” he said. “Whether it has any impact on my future, I don’t know. I spoke to Dermot on Saturday and he said all the speculation is just noise and nonsense.
“I knew that anyway because these are class people I work for. I’ve worked for them before and know the way they work. So I know it’s just conjecture and speculation. They leave me to get on with the job which is obviously reassuring. But I didn’t need that reassurance anyway.
“There was a lot of pressure because of the significance of the game today. If we’d lost, the treble treble was gone and the great cup record was gone. So it was really important to negotiate that.”
Asked if Desmond had arranged to talk with him about the job, Lennon said: “No. He’s a tough man. He is very demanding, but that’s why he is who he is. Again, I’ve had no guarantees, no reassurances, no promises. I’m here to do a job and I’m taking it game by game.
“I’m older now, I can take all the noise. Maybe 10 years ago I would have got upset or annoyed about it. But not now.”
READ MORE: The Celtic players want Neil Lennon to get the job, says Jozo Simunovic
Asked if he would be disappointed if he is overlooked, he said: “No. Because if the club perceives the best way forward is to go somewhere else, then who am I to argue with that? That’s for other people to decide. Then I’ve got a decision as well.
“I’ve only been here two months. I’m enjoying it. To a certain degree it’s difficult because you are inheriting a very good team who were going well. You don’t want to spoil that, so it’s been a real balancing act for me on a personal level.
“But it’s a good experience. It’s a good challenge - really different pressure to what I’ve experienced before in my career.”
Lennon’s joy at the semi-final victory was tempered by the serious injury that Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie suffered following a challenge by Dom Ball in the first-half.
The Scotland internationalist was knocked unconscious and required six minutes of treatment on the park before being stretchered off and taken to hospital.
His manager, though, is optimistic Christie will be available for the Scottish Cup final against Hearts at Hampden on May 25.
“Unfortunately we have lost Ryan to what could be a very bad injury,” he said. “He was conscious at half-time. We are not sure if it’s a broken eye socket or a fractured cheekbone.
READ MORE: Aberdeen 0 Celtic 3: How the Celtic players rated
“According to the medical team, we are hopeful he will be fit for the final when it comes around. We are looking at maybe three or four weeks out.
“Both myself and Derek (Aberdeen manager McInnes) heard the crack, it was a hell of a challenge. But again I apportion no blame to Dominic, there was no intent.”
Lennon added: “It’s tremendous, a brilliant feeling. There has been a lot of pressure this week, pressure I haven’t really experienced before. The circumstances of the job can be quite awkward.
“So I was really pleased with the performance first and foremost. It felt more like it today, rather than slow and pedestrian. We played with a lot of attacking intent so I’m delighted with that. I’m delighted we negotiated a very tough game under a lot of scrutiny.”
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