The aftershocks of Celtic’s staggering 7-1 defeat to Borussia Dortmund continue to resonate, with former manager Neil Lennon weighing in on where the responsibility lies for this humbling loss in the Champions League.
Lennon’s insights come after Brendan Rodgers’ side was thoroughly outclassed by last season’s runners-up, raising serious questions about the tactics employed by the current manager.
Celtic entered the match at Signal Iduna Park buoyed by a strong start to their season, but their confidence quickly evaporated as they succumbed to a relentless Bundesliga attack.
Reflecting on the defeat, Lennon was forthright in his assessment, noting that while he had low expectations for a win, he anticipated a competitive display from the Hoops, as he BLAMES the entire team including the likes of Callum McGregor, Maeda, Arne Engels and co.
“I didn’t expect Celtic to win,” Lennon admitted to TNT Sports.
“I expected them to give a good account of themselves with the form that they had, and I also expected them to score, which they did. But they let the game get away from them. It was too passive. Far too passive, with passing that didn’t do the dirty bits of the game well enough.”
Lennon highlighted a fundamental issue with Celtic’s approach, suggesting that they lacked the physicality needed to compete at this level.
“They weren’t physical enough; they were too nice and didn’t turn Dortmund at all. They kept playing the same way, and the results were the same. Goal against, goal against, goal against. It’s a beautiful game, but it’s ruthless. And Celtic were exposed.”
Despite the heavy loss, Lennon remains optimistic about Celtic’s prospects in the competition.
“There’s still lots of mileage in this group for them to go,” he noted.
“But they’ve got to analyze and say to themselves, we can’t do this away from home against top teams. We have to find another way of playing at times. It’s all right playing good football, but playing in the red areas.”
While many have pointed fingers at Brendan Rodgers for the defeat, Lennon was keen to defend his former colleague.
“You can’t keep blaming the manager,” he asserted.
“Celtic have got a top manager in Brendan Rodgers. Yes, he wants his team to play football, but he did say, at times, we’re going to suffer during the game, and they did suffer.”
Lennon emphasized the importance of adapting during difficult moments.
“When you suffer, you take the heat off yourself. You take the pressure off yourself. First of all, you win the ball, and then you get your wide men into the game with the pace and power that both Daizen Maeda and Luis Palma have.
“They didn’t use that anywhere near enough with balls over the top or down the sides of the full-backs, who I felt were there at times to be got at.”
The former Celtic manager did not shy away from critiquing the players’ decision-making, particularly regarding their passing.
“In the end, it was little tippy-tappy passes through the midfield. If we had done that in our playing days, we would have got absolutely hammered for playing like that.”
Unfortunately for Rodgers, scrutiny is inevitable due to the weight of past defeats he has overseen in the Champions League.
A single result like this might sting but can often be excused, particularly when set against a backdrop of similar heavy defeats to elite clubs like Barcelona and PSG.
Such history inevitably raises questions about the manager’s ability to navigate high-pressure European encounters.
Looking ahead, the focus for Rodgers and his squad will now shift to the domestic scene, where they face Ross County on Sunday.
It will be crucial for the team to regroup and secure a win in Dingwall to help lift the spirits after this harrowing experience in Germany.
For Lennon, the lessons learned from the Dortmund defeat are clear, and he hopes Celtic can apply them moving forward as they look to salvage their European campaign.