Steep Learning Curve for Lennon

Last night, Celtic all but exited the Champions League following a 3-0 defeat against Serie A leaders Juventus. Fortress Parkhead, which as been the venue for victories over last night's opposition, Barcelona (twice), Manchester United and AC Milan since the turn of the millennium, was silenced by a clinically ruthless performance from the Turin side. Celtic's pressure didn't tell, and this will lead to questions as to how it could have all gone so wrong for the Scottish Champions. This post will evaluate the game, take a look Lennon's record, and see where Celtic might be come the start of the Champions League next year.

The game last night showed the difference in class between the two sides. Celtic had more possession, more shots on target, and more corners, but Juventus led in the only stat that counts; goals. While Celtic were left with a raft of half chances, the best being Ambrose's poor header in the 61st minute, Juventus looked dangerous every time they attacked. Other than the three goals they scored, they also had a ball cleared off the line by Kelvin Wilson after Mirko Vucinic's shot had beaten Forster in the 66th minute.

Much has already been written about Efe Ambrose. The Nigerian played in the Africa Cup of Nations Final on Sunday evening, and only arrived back in Glasgow in Tuesday morning. He misjudged the flight of the ball for Juve's first goal, before losing the ball in the lead up the Juve's third. It's easy to say after the event, but he should not have been in team. Everything bad that happened, in defence and attack, involved Ambrose. Lennon claimed afterwards that he had "no alternative" to keeping Ambrose on the pitch for the duration of the match, and went further claiming that he did not have "many alternatives" to Ambrose to choose from before kick-off. Adam Matthews might have something to say about that.

Lennon defended the Nigerian claiming that he wasn't tired and that the only mistake he made had been for the first goal. This ignores the fact that the third goal was also largely his fault. He also headed Celtic's best chance of the game straight into the hands of Gianluigi Buffon. Striker Kris Commons was less forgiving of Ambrose, telling The Independent that "he should have put in a better performance" if he was as fit as he proclaimed he was, to Lennon, before the match. Commons went further claiming that the Nigerian should not have played if he felt he wasn't fit enough. There is some truth in this; there is a responsibility on the individual player to be honest with his manager and his team mates. Ambrose's performance after the opening goal should have been enough to alert Lennon to the fact that he wasn't having an on-day.

Lennon, and his team, shouldn't be roundly criticised however. The performance was up there with the performance against Barcelona, and was, in many respects, better. They took on a team from a league which is far superior to the one they play in, week in and week out, and they were arguably the better side. They held possession well for large parts, and on another night they could have won. Against Barcelona, Celtic had a few chances, between the two games, and managed to score three goals. Last night, they had two decent chances, and a host of other half chances which just didn't go in. Juventus only really dominated in the last ten minutes, when Celtic had become completely disheartened.

Their adventure in Europe this season has seen them come from being a team who had qualified for the previous season's Europa League by default, to one that has come through two Champions League qualifying rounds, and qualified for the competition's knock-out stages from a group in which they were bottom seeds. Celtic's victory against Barcelona before Christmas was truly one of the best Celtic victories at the eastend Glasgow venue ever, and it certainly has to be the best victory that this generation of players has seen. Neil Lennon said at the time that it was "up there with anything I have achieved, not just in my football career but in my life." He claimed to be unsure whether he would ever top it, but even if he doesn't, it was a great night that Celtic fans will remember for years to come.

The difficulty for Lennon and Celtic now is the likely exodus of players during the summer. Gary Hooper had three offers rejected for him from Norwich. The Englishman rejected the offer of a new contract, and thus it is highly likely he will be heading down south for next season. This likelihood is compounded, from a Celtic point of view, by the fact that he will only have a year left on his current deal come the summer. If Celtic want to make any money out of his transfer, they will have to do it this summer.

Another likely departure is Victar Wanyama. Arsenal were said to have been scouting him last night, Liverpool were said to have been scouting him before Christmas, while Man United were rumoured to have had a bid for him rejected before Christmas. The Kenyan, who has two and a half years left on his Celtic contract, rejected an offer of a longer contract with improved wages before Christmas. This angered Lennon, who claimed that the offer had been a "goodwill gesture", and that if he wants to go, a club will have to bid for him at his market value, which Lennon believes is "£25 million."

Fraser Forster attracted praise for his performances in the Champions League before Christmas, and this led to reported interest from Manchester United. Like Wanyama however, Forster has longer than a year left on his contract, and this should mean he will be at Parkhead next season.

It might seem a bit early in the season to be writing a piece like this, but Celtic have the Scottish League sewn up, and they are not going to beat Juve by three goals or more in a few weeks time. In essence, the only truly competitive games for Celtic between now and summer will be in the Scottish Cup. Lennon will be determined to win that competition, to right the wrongs of his so-called "Hampden Hoodoo." By doing so, he can win only the 14th domestic double in Celtic's 125 year history. Although their European adventure might be over, Lennon and his players deserve to be praised for their performances. Even if the team falls apart somewhat next season, as players look to leave, Lennon has secured the finances of the club for the foreseeable future. While criticism can be placed at Lennon's door for last night's selection of Ambrose, the bigger picture tells a different story. Lennon set up his team to attack, and it was only the quality of their opponents, and that little bit of luck that they got against Barcelona, that prevented Celtic getting something out of the game.