Celtic, after a mellowed start to the season, are getting into their element as they have been blowing out teams for fun in the last few weeks. Neil Lennon deserves a lot of credit for that, and the players have also stepped up as the Hoops are on top of the table in the Europa League as well as the Premiership.
They also made it to yet another cup final as they demolished Hibernian 5-2. Captain Scott Brown got a brace in that game, and the 34-year-old is still going strong in the middle. Lennon has hardly rested him, and the Scotsman is starting week in week out regularly. A lot of us assumed that the team management would have to manage his game time this season, but Brown has shown his supreme fitness and performance level.
Lennon therefore recently indicated that there could be talks of a contract extension with Brown. The midfielder’s current deal expires in 2021, but he could be handed a new deal which could see him extend his stay for another year at Parkhead.
Lennon on Brown’s performance so far and his future
The Celtic boss recently said (Daily Record), ”He’s incredible. And I think he’s playing as well as ever. I look at Rangers away, Lazio, Hibs on Saturday, Aberdeen away and other games. “As for another contract, the way he’s playing at the minute, it might cost us a few bob! It will depend on how he’s feeling and how he’s playing at the time. I think he’s got another year after this one.
”We’ll take a view of that maybe this time next year, with him as well. He’s in a good place, and the players respect him and look up to him. He’s not in the team as a cheerleader. He’s in the team because he’s a bloody good player.”
Right call from Lennon?
The midfielder has already played 24 games in all competitions so far, and as Lennon indicated, he has been quite consistent with his performances. Brown was under the firing line earlier this season for his performance against Cluj in the Champions League qualifiers where the Hoops came out second best. However, barring the odd one or two bad games, one couldn’t really fault Brown for anything this season. His reading of the game, feistiness and ability to dictate tempo from deep makes him a standout asset.
There is no doubt that he has a significant influence on the young players and the way they play. If there aren’t any injury issues, then we could very much see Brown getting another new deal. There were rumours last season about his future as clubs from Australia were linked with him. But he went on to sign a two-year extension to show how much of a Celtic man he is. Many assumed that it would be his last contract extension, but Brown has kept on turning the clock back to show he is still the man to lead Celtic.
