As he cavorted around the Hampden pitch yesterday afternoon, the Scottish Cup safely gathered within his clutches, Celtic boss Neil Lennon wore the expression of a very satisfied man indeed.
And why not. Lennon had secured the league and cup double, the club’s first in six years. For once, few questions were being asked about the validity of the triumph given Rangers’ current meanderings among the lower orders of the Scottish game; Lennon was allowed to bask in the glory of a noteworthy achievement.
And, when you add the run to the last 16 of the Champions League – not forgetting the defeat of Barcelona en route – it would be churlish to deny that the manager’s delight was anything but warranted.
After all, it’s hardly Lennon’s fault that Rangers’ financial collapse last year left his side without a serious challenge. Neither can he be blamed for the other sides’ failure to muster what could even loosely be termed a challenge to his team’s supremacy, including Hibs during what was as one-sided a final as the 3-0 score line suggests.
Mind you, Lennon must know that Celtic’s achievements are likely to be at least called into question so long as their great rivals languish in the lower leagues. And, even when Rangers do finally claw their way back to the SPL, the feeling persists that it will be a good few seasons until they can sustain a challenge to Celtic over the course of a long season.
Inevitably, some have started to question whether Lennon will wait around long enough to extend Celtic’s dominance for years to come. He’s bound to lose two or three of his best players this summer – Victor Wanyama and Gary Hooper appear destined for the English Premiership – and it’s difficult to see Celtic replacing such talents readily (Of course, there’s a school of thought which suggests that Celtic don’t exactly need to replace them to ensure success, domestically at least).
Which takes us on to Europe. This season’s run will almost certainly have whetted Lennon’s appetite for further success on that stage, although you wonder what happens if (and this is not impossible) his side fail to qualify for the lucrative Champions League group stages this next campaign.
With only a challenge-free run towards another league title to look forward to, will this be enough for Lennon, who as a young ambitious manager clearly wants to operate at the highest level possible.
Lennon has been touted for a move to the Premiership, with Everton in particular being mentioned in despatches. Stoke City too have a vacancy.
However, Lennon, should one of those clubs express interest in securing his services, would have a decision to make. Either to stay with a huge club (the proverbial big fish in a small pond), with the virtual guarantee of Champions League qualification on offer every year for the foreseeable future, and the backing of a hugely loyal support, or jump ship for a crack at management at a higher level.
It’s a decision that isn’t perhaps as straightforward as some may think. Celtic is a much bigger club than the likes of the aforementioned Everton or Stoke, but they operate within an environment which is not recognised outside Scotland as being of a decent standard. (In that regard, for instance, it’s quite baffling how the likes of Hooper of goalkeeper Fraser Forster continue to be ignored by Roy Hodgson).
You also wonder whether Celtic can improve much beyond their current status. A run to the last 16 of Europe’s premier tournaments – and the riches that goes with that, of course – is far from guaranteed from one season to the next, and, aside from a domestic treble, how do they set about claiming progress is being made twelve months down the line?
Then there’s the not insignificant issue of job security. Despite his protestations to the contrary, Lennon is more than likely to have the top job at Celtic for a good while yet, with little prospect of the sack given his club’s inevitable year-on-year trophy success. While a move to the Premiership may offer a significant and immediate uplift in riches and status for him, longevity is far from guaranteed.
There are managers aplenty who have singularly failed to make inroads despite successful club careers in Scotland – look no further than Alex McLeish, Owen Coyle, Derek McInnes and even Gordon Strachan. Surely enough there to ensure that Lennon at least pauses for serious thought before packing his bags and heading south any time soon.