Neil Lennon warns Celtic to heed their own example as his mind races back to day of shock and awe
Neil Lennon has warned Celtic the best team don't always win Cup Finals and that they are best example of it.
Lennon was in charge for the 2019 League Cup Final that saw the 10-man Hoops do a number on Rangers at Hampden. Christopher Jullien fired home against the run of play with his side's only effort on target, before Lennon's men had to cope with going down to 10 men when Jeremie Frimpong was sent off, only for Alfredo Morelos to miss the resulting penalty.
That made it a 10th consecutive trophy for the Parkhead club and their fourth League Cup triumph on the bounce. Lennon admits the performance came as a surprise given their form going into the game, and that the mini 10-In-A-Row chance played on the players' minds. And he reckons he was due a rub of the green at Hampden after previous Cup Final experiences.
"Celtic's form going into that League Cup final was brilliant," he told the Celtic Way. "We'd beaten Lazio who we were second in Serie A, home and away. We'd scored five against Hibs in the semi-final. We were flying. For whatever reason, we just didn't turn up against Rangers and it's hard to put your finger on that.
"You've got to give the opposition credit because they played well. I think the Celtic players knew that they were on a winning run of consecutive trophies. I think that was the 10th piece of silverware in a row. It was starting to weigh heavy on the players.
"We had to dig deep, we didn't play well at all. I think I was the owed one because there are a few other cup finals that I have been involved in where we have been the better team and battered teams and didn't win it. So maybe it was my turn.
"It has gone down in history as the Fraser Forster final. I mean, some of his performances in a