Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Glasgow Live
Glasgow Live
Sport
Chris Doyle

Neil Lennon hails Celtic super subs Frimpong and Elyounoussi as he reveals James Forrest injury blow

Neil Lennon has praised Moi Elyounoussi and Jeremie Frimpong for helping Celtic secure a late win against Riga.

The Hoops left it late in Latvia with a 1-0 victory as they reached the Europa League playoffs.

It was frustrating evening for the most part as the home side put eleven men behind the ball.

The visitors struggled to make the breakthrough until the introduction of Elyounoussi late on who fired a brilliant strike into the bottom corner.

Frimpong, who also came off the bench for James Forrest, was the main bright spark for Celtic and it was no surprise he was the one to set up the winning goal.

And Lennon hailed his super subs and insists he was happy with the performance.

He said: "I thought we were very good. We had to wait a long time for the goal. Sometimes that happens in football. I thought we were excellent and our mentality was good. We missed a couple of really good chances to make life a little bit easier for us.

"Moi’s come up with a great goal and I’m delighted with the performance. It’s not easy playing away from home but it was a good performance and a very important win. It takes two teams to make a game watchable and Riga set out their intentions from very early on.

"Moi's been out of the team for a few games and hasn’t been at his best but he’s trained brilliantly and he sets a great example for the rest of the squad. He comes up with a really important goal and I couldn’t be happier for him. I hope that sets his season on fire because he's a top player."

"Frimpong was superb second half. He’s put two beautiful crosses in and we should have scored off both of them. Then he comes up with another really good one. Albian makes a good run across the defender and a fantastic finish by Moi.

"Jerry (Frimpong) is starting to look more like himself. He’s got a proper pair of boots on and he looks more comfortable. He gave us that verve and that impetus going forward. We looked strong at the back, strong in midfield with good fitness levels."

Forrest limped off with an ankle injury in the first half and Lennon says he will get a scan to discover the extent of it, but will miss Sunday's clash against Hibs.

He added: "He’s got bone bruising in his ankle so well have to see. It’ll have to be scanned either tomorrow or Saturday so he’ll not make the weekend."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.