Scottish Premiership champions Celtic need a new full-time coach but will it be Neil Lennon or Belgium national team boss Roberto Martinez?
Former Scottish Premiership boss Gerry Collins believes he knows who the next Celtic manager will be – Roberto Martinez, speaking on Rock Sport Radio.
Neil Lennon is currently in the Celtic dugout, having returned to Parkhead in February after Brendan Rodgers walked away from another treble winning campaign to take over from Claude Puel at Leicester City.
Lennon has done a fine job so far, guiding The Hoops into the Scottish Cup semi-finals while extending their lead at the top of the Premiership table to ten points.
But it remains to be seen whether the 47-year-old will be offered the job on a full-time basis.
Collins, who previously coached Partick Thistle and Falkirk, believes it is Martinez, not Lennon, who will be coaching the green and whites next season with former Bhoys star Shaun Maloney set to be announced as the Spaniard’s assistant.
“I genuinely believe Martinez and Shaun Maloney [will be hired]. I don’t think the deal is done, I think they’re still negotiating on that deal,” Collins said.
“He’s the type of manager that Celtic want, he plays good football.”
Martinez coached in the Premier League for Wigan Athletic and Everton and developed a reputation as a footballing purist renowned for his free-flowing attacking football. He appears to have understood the importance of a little pragmatism too, his well drilled Belgium side beating Brazil en route to the World Cup semi-finals last summer.
Speaking to the Glasgow Evening Times, Martinez revealed that Celtic had tried and failed to appoint him a decade ago.
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