Fulham opinion: Cottagers should appoint Neil Lennon as their manager

According to the Scottish Sun, Celtic manager Neil Lennon has been shortlisted by Fulham to take up the permanent job at Craven Cottage at the end of the season.

Scott Parker is currently in charge of Fulham on an interim basis, following the dismissal of Claudio Ranieri but the club hierarchy has apparently deemed him unfit for the permanent job, as they continue looking at other options.

Fulham have already been relegated from the Premier League after a calamitous season in the top-flight and the Cottagers are set for a long and hard slog in the Championship next term.

Parker’s men, though, have put in some exceptional performances after relegation was confirmed, beating Everton and Bournemouth in back-to-back Premier League games.

Meanwhile, Neil Lennon has done his reputation no harm on his return to Celtic, as a caretaker manager, following the departure of Brendan Rodgers to Leicester City.

The 47-year-old former Northern Ireland international has done a good job in holding things together at Parkhead, making sure that the Hoops cruise to the Scottish Premiership title.

The Scottish Sun further adds that Lennon is in a pole position to land the permanent job at Celtic and he would consider a position at another club, only if the Hoops entrust someone else with the job in the summer.

Lennon enjoyed a successful spell at Celtic as a player and won 5 Scottish Premiership titles, before returning to serve as a manager from 2010 to 2014.

His first spell as a manager at Parkhead was a trophy-laden one, where he guided the Hoops to three consecutive domestic league titles, including 2 Scottish Cup triumphs as well.

Having taken Celtic to great heights, both as a player and manager, Lennon is held in very high regard at Parkhead and is a firm fan-favourite in Scotland for his charisma and managerial acumen.

However, the 47-year-old’s only managerial experience in England was an ill-fated spell at Bolton Wanderers in the Championship.

Having taken charge at the Reebok Stadium in 2014, he barely managed to survive relegation in the Championship in his first season and endured an equally unimpressive run in his second season, with controversies off the field adding to his woes.

He eventually terminated his contract on mutual consent in 2016 and returned to Scotland with Hibernian, where he helped the club to a promotion-winning season in the 2016-17 Scottish Championship.

To put things into perspective, Fulham should not drop their interest in Lennon, just because he had a lackluster spell at Bolton. The 47-year-old Celtic legend is still a very good manager, who has all the qualities to help the club in their rebuilding job in the summer.

Lennon is a brave manager, who is not afraid to make tough decisions in the transfer window, often bringing in little-known, talented young players from other leagues on the cheap and transforming them into first-team stars.

He is someone who looks for bargain deals in the market and believes in getting value for money, while also having the ability to extract the best out of the existing players at the club.

The Northern Irishman’s amiable demeanour and his understanding of the game might play a crucial role in Fulham’s campaign in the Championship next season.

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The Cottagers should look to get themselves back to the Premier League and Neil Lennon is certainly a good option for the permanent manager role at Craven Cottage.