Celtic may still be eyeing up other managers this summer.
Celtic have seen Neil Lennon steady the ship at Parkhead, stepping in on an interim basis after Brendan Rodgers’ abrupt move to Leicester City in January.
The Bhoys needed stability after seeing Rodgers move back to England, and ex-manager Lennon returned to help keep them on course for glory.
Almost two months on, Celtic are into the Scottish Cup final and are set to win the Scottish Premiership title, with a third straight domestic treble in sight.
Lennon is therefore the frontrunner for the job, but Celtic would be foolish not to consider outside candidates – and one name often mentioned is that of Steve Clarke.
The 55-year-old has rebuilt his career having remarkably overperformed on a tiny budget at Kilmarnock, losing just 15 of his 74 games in charge, whilst winning 50% of them.
His exploits at Rugby Park have seen him touted for other jobs, and one of his former Chelsea teammates has backed him to beat Lennon to the Celtic job.
Joe McLaughlin has told The Herald that he thinks Clarke should be a ‘stick-on’ for the job, believing that he is the better candidate for the job.
McLaughlin, a former Scotland Under-21 international who coached under Mark McGhee at Millwall, added that he has proven himself with little money at Killie, and now deserves the chance to take a bigger budget with Celtic – but whether the club agree or not is another matter.
“Steve should be a stick-on for that job,” said McLaughlin. “Obviously Neil Lennon is in pole position but if Celtic are looking elsewhere then I think Steve would be the best candidate to go in there. He’s proved himself at Kilmarnock and now deserves the chance to do it with a bigger club and with a bigger budget,” he added.
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