Neil Lennon savoured moving into an elite spot in Celtic’s managerial history as he dismissed the critics who have branded Nine in a Row tainted.
The Parkhead boss finally got his hands on the Premiership trophy and immediately set his sights on the Ten after the SPFL called the campaign after 30 matches.
The champions emulated the club’s Nine in a Row achievement of 46 years ago with the success also elevating the boss in all-time rankings of Celtic managers.
The Northern Irishman has now led the club to five titles and sits only behind Willie Maley and Jock Stein in terms of leagues won, while his ninth major honour in the hotseat also moved him one ahead of Billy McNeill.
Most importantly, it has opened the door for the champions to set a new benchmark next term and Lennon now has his eyes firmly on it – but don’t dare brand it tainted.
He said: “Tainted titles suggests some sort of illegality or some kind of cheating going on.
“This season was curtailed through no fault of our own.
“When we won the eighth one at Aberdeen last year, a lot of supporters were pre-empting going for 10, but you have to win nine first.
“I can now safely say we can go for the 10.
“I have been sitting on that for quite a while and thinking about it throughout the season.
“We have achieved that (nine) now and now we can go for the ten.
“I can’t believe I’m saying that. I remember in 2011 when we lost the league, saying it was just the beginning of something special. But I could never have envisaged how special it was going to be.
“I have to pay tribute to Brendan Rodgers and Ronny Deila who played a huge part in the success of the club.
“We’ll go for the ten. It’s historic, it’s momentous, and it’s very special so we’d all like to do that.”
Lennon says no-one can take shine off the silverware as he added: “We’ve done nothing wrong, we’ve played the games, we’ve played with great discipline, we’ve played with great skill.
“The powers that be, the member clubs, said that this was the best way to resolve things if no football was going to be played.
“Clubs voted on the resolution eventually. I am a football competitor, I want to do it in front of the fans, I want to do it with the players.
“That was taken away from us. That opportunity for the first time guys like [Christopher] Jullien, [Boli] Bolingoli and [Jeremie] Frimpong. They didn’t get the chance to win their first medal in front of the home support which is what we all work for and strive for.
“But there was no way we were going to relinquish anything on the football field, we were very strong and coming on stronger.
“We wanted to do it in front of our supporters. That wasn’t possible, but it is a momentous day for the club.
“Supporters of a certain vintage will remember the first time Celtic did nine in a row. They probably couldn’t believe this could happen again.
“To be the manager of nine titles in a row is something you dream about. From a personal point of view it feels absolutely amazing, so without doubt this is the best of the lot.”
Lennon’s trophy haul as Celtic manager alone put him high amongst some exalted company and he said: “I’ve been given this gift of managing the club for the second time. It’s a privilege.
“To be on that pantheon of managers is fantastic. But I want more. I don’t want to stop now. I’m 48, still relatively young. I’ve still got a lot to learn and a lot to achieve. I’ve got a lot of incentives and targets.”
