Celtic captain Neil Lennon is looking to continue playing for the Glasgow club and has asked his representatives to continue with contract talks despite admitting his future remains uncertain. A meeting with chief executive Peter Lawwell has been arranged later this week and he hopes to discuss his future with manager Gordon Strachan. But Lennon would not rule out taking on a new challenge as he is anxious to avoid his career winding down. Lennon, who signed a one-year deal last summer, said: "It's in the back of my mind that I have achieved everything I wanted to do. But every year I think that and every year there is another challenge that is thrown up for me. Being the captain of Celtic and hopefully the champions is a lot to give up. I will weigh all these things up and talk with the manager and see what plans he has. The Champions League was a big carrot for me this season, the one thing I hadn't done was make the last 16, so that was a big weight off my shoulders. We have achieved a lot but you are judged by what you do in Europe, that's the big boys' playground. But having said that we haven't won an away game yet in the Champions League so that might be the motivation for me for another year."
Although Lennon does not want his Celtic career to fizzle out, losing the captaincy would not stop him re-signing. He said: "As long as it's a playing role I don't mind, but I don't want to be the old player that hangs around clapping the boys off. America doesn't really appeal to me, I want to finish my career at the highest level possible, whether it's Celtic or elsewhere. I am going to play another year, that's for sure, I feel good physically. I'll sit down with the manager, I've got great respect for him and I think it's reciprocated." Lennon dismissed the idea of a player-coach role, saying: "I don't think you could do both, you either concentrate on one or the other." While Lennon is keen to continue playing at the top level, there seems little chance of his profile diminishing in the twilight of a career littered with controversy over his relationship with fans. The midfielder, who quit playing for Northern Ireland after receiving death threats, has been attacked in the street and had slogans daubed on the road outside his Glasgow home. He was the focus of attention again last month when he threw a plastic bottle into the dug-out during an argument with a Hoops fan at the end of the 1-0 defeat by Rangers, and was caught on camera making a one-fingered salute to Falkirk fans. But Lennon defended his right to answer his critics.
He said: "Everyone goes on about the bottle-throwing incident, the guy was actually criticising the team. I said, 'Look it's the first game we've lost at home for 18 months, it's the first game we've lost in the league for 28 games, you should be applauding the team'. I didn't think we had played that badly. He has got a right to criticise the team and I have got a right to defend my team-mates. When people say, 'These boys get paid a lot of money, it's part of the job', it shouldn't be part of the job to listen to personal abuse about you and your family. Supporters - if you look at the word - it's support, they should be able to support the team. But our fans in the main are awesome, particularly the ones that travel with us in Europe. They have been an absolute credit, they have made us proud. I don't think I've taken a lot of flak from my own supporters. There is going to be the odd incident but when you are captain of the Old Firm it seems to get highlighted a lot more. I'll take all the flak that comes as long as I've got a few medals to show for it." | 