This season has been a disaster for Celtic. Heading into the campaign hoping to secure a historic tenth consecutive league title, things have gone wrong in just about every possible way.
Their title challenge is all but over, while they were also knocked out of the Europa League in the group stages. As a result, the pressure has been piling on Neil Lennon.
It is looking increasingly likely that he will be on his way out of Parkhead in the coming weeks, with one of his former teammates now admitting that his time at the club is up.
Speaking on ten10podcast.com, former Celtic striker John Hartson said that while he has plenty of sympathy for Lennon, it is becoming clear that a change is needed.
I am a pundit but I care like the fans care, I am a Celtic supporter and ex-player and it is just very disappointing to see how this season has so fizzled out. I think a change is needed.
I send Neil best wishes and good luck when he needs it but to lose the league in such a big, big season in the way they have, has been so disappointing.
Not just me, look at Chris Sutton, Stan Petrov, Alan Thompson and Henrik Larsson (former team mates), we all love Neil and want him to succeed and we were all delighted when he brought home the quadruple treble but I do genuinely think, with the situation in the league, a change is needed from the bottom to the top, I really do.
The whole thing needs to be changed and it needs to happen pretty soon.
Maybe the players need a different voice. Neil might want a new challenge, a fresh start. Sometimes it doesn’t work, Neil is intelligent enough, he has to see this.
It has taken me this long to say I would like to see a change, new staff, a freshness, something different. Neil has done amazing. His trophy haul has been fantastic both as a player and a manager.
I just think the club need to say that they are going to change the manager, whether he goes at the end of the season or now, it is tough call for me to say it but I think it needs to be done. The time has come.
Celtic suffered yet another setback yesterday after their 0-0 home draw with Livingston, meaning they now sit 20 points behind Rangers in the table (albeit with three games in hand).
It looks set to be a long second half of the campaign for the club. Many will be wondering how they have managed to let their dominant position in Scottish football slip in such a short period of time, but their recruitment in recent windows has not worked out.
Hartson believes that the current squad, including new signings such as Shane Duffy, will be glad that supporters are currently not aloud into stadiums.
I actually think it is a blessing that the fans are not allowed in because at this moment in time there would probably be about 15,000 fans watching Celtic.
I think a lot of them would have stayed away having watching some of the drizzle Celtic have shown up this season.
I think the players have got away with murder. I played at Celtic Park for five years and I had the Celtic manager and the crowd barking down my throat every time I gave the ball away.
The players are giving the ball away willy-nilly now, the passing is not crisp, not accurate, there is a lot of sloppiness going on.
The defenders are not winning tackles and interceptions, the crowd would go berserk, you would be booed off half the time.
That has not happened so in a way you could say, yes, they have missed the crowd but they would get on to them and make it more difficult. How much stick would they be giving Shane Duffy now?
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