Jozo Simunovic looks a lot more confident at Celtic these days.
Jozo Simunovic has told The Scottish Sun that he feels Neil Lennon has made him a better player at Celtic.
The Croatian centre-back has looked born again since Lennon replaced Rodgers on an interim basis back in February.
Simunovic scored his first goal of the season in Saturday’s 1-0 victory over Kilmarnock at Parkhead.
Confidence is oozing back into a player who only played under Rodgers this season if one of Dedryck Boyata or Filip Benkovic were missing.
Even with Benkovic fit, the former Dinamo Zagreb star is playing ahead of him and Simunovic feels that Lennon has improved him.
He told The Scottish Sun: “I would say it’s a new beginning for me and I feel good. I believe that I can be better as a player and everything else. If you look in the past, I haven’t played as much. But I have come back and I am playing well again.
“Even at some points, I feel as though I may be playing better than I did before, so I didn’t lose the time when I was out of the team and not playing for the side.”
“I am feeling very good. I always think that when a new manager comes it brings something new, something positive or some changes. The manager has brought that for me, personally, and for some of the other players here as well.”
Boyata and Benkovic are unlikely to be at Celtic next season and therefore it’s very encouraging to see Simunovic rediscover his form.
He and Kristoffer Ajer might be massive players for the Hoops next term, perhaps even the first-choice pairing in central defence, so it could be very beneficial that they’re playing together regularly at the moment.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
