Chris Sutton has said the doubters when Neil Lennon was appointed manager by Celtic have now been silenced after the Hoops’ win against Lazio on Thursday night.

There were many fans and pundits who questioned the Irishman being hired for the second time earlier this year, and Sutton thinks a lot of that is down to how people contrasted his management style to previous coach Brendan Rodgers:

“Lennon deserves enormous credit for what he’s instilled into his team and that’s before you talk about his tactical acumen. He’s old school, he’s not modern. That was the junk trotted out by some so-called experts and fans when Rodgers left in February and Lennon took his place.

“Brainwashed by Rodgers’ chat and talk. I’m not going to criticise Rodgers. He was a cracking manager for the club and did a superb job. But if anyone can’t see Lennon is just as capable, they don’t know football.”

It must be said that Lennon has already surpassed Rodgers’ in terms of his achievements on a European stage by qualifying for the knockout rounds of the Europa League.

However, it is not fair to knock what his predecessor did achieve in terms of two domestic trebles, and while Lennon has already won trophies during his second spell in charge, there is still a way to go this season to see if his side can match Rodgers’ team in terms of league dominance.