The Celtic boss wanted the striker to work hard during the two week period.
Leigh Griffiths hasn’t played for Celtic since August.
His last appearance came as a substitute against Hearts in a 3-1 Scottish Premiership.
Having initially made a triumphant return to the Hoops first-team during the early stages of the season, after a hiatus from the game to deal with personal issues, fitness and injury problems eventually took their toll.
The striker has struggled to make it back into Neil Lennon’s first-team plans, despite Vakoun Bayo also having problems of his own in support of Odsonne Edouard.
Before the international break though, Lennon made it clear he’d be putting the Scotland international through his paces at Lennoxtown in the two-week period between club matches.
As quoted by The Daily Record, he said on 10th November: “We’re hoping to give him two good weeks of work, then he has a developmental game next week – see how he comes through that.
“We want him up to speed, he’s not up to speed, not at the level that we want him at, he’s got to do the work in the next two weeks.”
That development game came yesterday in a friendly against Stenhousemuir, with the forward meeting the challenge impressively by scoring two goals.
The 29-year-old struck twice in the space of just a few minutes against the lower league outfit, getting some much-needed minutes into his legs.
His performance suggests he’s making good progress towards a potential first-team return, with the goals a sign he isn’t suffering for confidence either.
Celtic have a difficult schedule coming up until the end of the year, playing in three different competitions. Having Griffiths back fit and firing would be a huge boost to their chances of maintaining consistency.
Edouard will undoubtedly remain the top dog in the attack, but having a goal threat like Griffiths on the bench or ready to come into select matches from the start could be crucial.
All eyes will be on this weekend’s teamsheet to see if the striker can make the bench after meeting Lennon’s challenge head-on.
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