Angry interim Celtic manager Neil Lennon said his players were “not good enough” after their shock 2-0 defeat to second-tier Ross County in the Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden.
The Glasgow giants slumped to one of the most embarrassing defeats in their history as the First Division underdogs dished out a giant-killing performance at the national stadium.
Second-half goals from Steven Craig and Martin Scott sent County into the final for the first time in their 81-year history, with just 16 of those years spent in the Scottish Football League after they left the Highland League in 1994.
It was the latest in a string of disappointing defeats for the Hoops after they exited the League Cup to Hearts, failed to make it out their Europa League group and currently trail Rangers by 13 points in the race for the Scottish Premier League title.
A 4-0 thrashing at the hands of SPL strugglers St Mirren last month spelled the end for manager Tony Mowbray, who had only joined the club from West Bromwich Albion in the summer, with Lennon stepping in until the end of the season.
The former Celtic captain said many of the current crop turning out for Celtic shouldn’t be at the club.
“The bottom line is they are not good enough,” Lennon said.
“They have pulled the wool over a lot of people’s eyes and it has been a pretty shambolic season. They are 13 points behind Rangers, we have gone out in the quarter-finals of the League Cup and the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup to a First Division team,” he said.
After two league wins since taking charge, the loss to County could prove a critical blow to Lennon’s chances of landing the position on a full-time basis.
However, he believes that if he isn’t given the job, he won’t be the only one shown the exit door at Celtic Park in the summer.
“There was no desire from us,” he said. “I’m sick of seeing our players fall over, sick of seeing strikers not wanting to go in where it hurts and score a goal for the team.”
“We can’t keep clean sheets either as we’re soft, it has been endemic all season. We’ve gone out of every competition with an absolute whimper,” Lennon said.
“You have to have desire and hunger from a kid growing up. You’ve got to love the game, play the game and want to win. We don’t have enough winners,” he said.
“I am well past angry with them. I didn’t rant and rave after the game. I spoke to them coldly for 15 minutes and basically told them what I thought of them,” the Northern Irishman said.
“They were sloppy and casual. I don’t know if they were nervous but they have to overcome all these things,” he said.
“Whether I am here or not next season, I told them I’m pretty sure some of them won’t be,” Lennon said. “You can get them motivated and they can pull the wool over your eyes that they’re up for it.”
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