Rangers legend Barry Ferguson has been taken aback by a surprise title race admission made by Celtic boss Neil Lennon [Go Radio via the Scottish Sun].
Lennon faced the media in a press conference on Monday afternoon and although chief executive Peter Lawwell referred to the club’s trip to Dubai as a ‘mistake’ just a matter of days ago, the Celtic manager refused to offer his own apology.
Instead, he went on the offensive, hitting out at other clubs, former players and even the Scottish Government.
Then, when asked if he thought he had a chance of turning the Hoops’ situation around, he replied: “Of course. The league may be beyond us but we’ll not stop trying” [Scottish Sun].
“What we have to do is start winning games on a consistent and regular basis and the players have proved they can do that.”
Lennon made many remarkable comments over the course of the press conference, with former Gers midfielder Alex Rae slamming his take on the Dubai trip.
However, it was the title race admission that really took Ferguson aback.
“I’m surprised, ‘maybe beyond them’, I wouldn’t expect that,” he said [Go Radio via the Scottish Sun].
“Maybe, ‘we’ll keep fighting but it will be tough’. It’s a strange comment from the manager.”
Rangers currently hold a whopping 21-point lead at the top of the table and are big favourites to win the title for the first time in a decade.
With three games in hand and two Old Firms to come, though, it’s bizarre that Lennon, a man who said just last month that winning this title meant more than anything to him other than his family [Scottish Sun], didn’t choose more positive wording.
It seems that even he is short on belief right now, despite Rangers dropping points at Motherwell on Sunday afternoon.
Celtic have a chance to reduce the gap when they take on Livingston at the Tony Macaroni Arena on Wednesday night, with the Gers not in action again until Saturday afternoon against Ross County.
Plenty of Bears are hopeful of receiving a major double boost for that fixture at Ibrox.
