Just when you think the hourglass is about to reach its end, Neil Lennon plucks something from the abyss.
When supporters first gathered outside Parkhead to protest in November, the manager eventually engineered a seven-game unbeaten run.
Of course, the Hoops are still a long way behind Rangers in their quest to win the title but after tasting defeat against St Mirren, bounced back in perfect fashion. A 4-0 win over Kilmarnock was a timely reminder of their qualities – particularly in the final third.
Though, this cannot paper over the cracks. The fact of the matter is that Lennon is doing a terrible job. They are 20 points behind the Gers and have shipped 13 more goals than their fierce rivals.
If Dermot Desmond and Peter Lawwell do decide to pull the plug on Lennon’s time at Parkhead then they’d do far worse than appointing Frank Lampard as his successor. The 42-year-old was sacked by Chelsea a few weeks ago and has been touted as the next Hoops boss.
Speaking about Lampard potentially coming to Glasgow, Pat Nevin said last week: “One thing I would say that Frank would bring to wherever he goes to: his connections are amazing.”
Nevin added: “The way he’s liked in the game is amazing. The players he could get, particularly at a Scottish club… I’ve ran a Scottish club myself before. One of the biggest things you can get is to tap into other markets, and get players you otherwise wouldn’t get. Frank’s pretty special on that level.”
Not only would his appointment at Celtic be game-changing for the entire club, but it has the potential to be terrific for midfielder David Turnbull.
The £3m summer signing has been a breath of fresh air for the Bhoys and has been particularly good in the last few weeks. He registered two assists against Killie on Tuesday evening, taking his tally to the campaign for 11 goal involvements.
Though, why would Lampard be good for Turnbull? Well, you only need to look at his influence on Mason Mount at Chelsea.
The Celtic dynamo is just one year Mount’s junior but critically, they’re very similar players. Both of them can play through the middle or out on the flanks, and both possess enormous levels of creativity.
Lampard first took Mount under his wing at Derby County where the England international scored 11 times and registered six assists. After that, the 22-year-old netted on 11 occasions and claimed 12 assists under the same manager at Chelsea.
Mount became an England regular courtesy of his work for Lampard and if we assess the statistics, we can see he’s very similar to Turnbull. The former has performed two shots per game this season and made 2.6 key passes per match in the Premier League. The latter, meanwhile, has managed a tally of 1.9 shots and 2.6 key passes. With that in mind, they are near identical.
Lampard clearly likes a player of Turnbull’s skill set and given his age, he still has plenty of room to grow. By arriving in Scotland, the ex-Chelsea midfielder could take the former Motherwell gem to a new level.
He is already showcasing tremendous abilities under Lennon but there is more to be extracted.