This is a complex time for Celtic.

Heading into their clash with AC Milan on Thursday evening, it looked as though it was the worst possible time to face one of the giants of European football.

The Hoops were already knocked out of the competition and had nothing to play for. Perhaps with the pressure off it would have helped proceedings, but confidence was at an all-time low.

Celtic had won just two of their last ten matches before last night and their 2-0 defeat against Ross County marked the nadir of the season so far.

To put things simply, Neil Lennon is in real bother.

They are 11 points of the pace in the SPFL and as a result, he could be sacked. The man tasked with replacing him might be Mark Hughes, that’s if Peter Lawwell views him suitable.

The idea of Hughes heading to Parkhead was brought up last week by Paul John Dykes on A Celtic State of Mind podcast. "Mark Hughes is a name that’s cropped up over the last few days, I think the Celtic support are kind of divided on that one."

You can understand why they’re a bit split on Hughes. At Southampton, he had a win percentage of just 18.5%.

That being said, the Welshman has traditionally overachieved and took Fulham to an eighth-place finish in the Premier League during the 2010/11 campaign.

Hughes then worked wonders with Stoke, establishing them as a top-half side in the Premier League, lifting the Potters to three straight ninth-place finishes.

Once he lost his job at Stoke, his profile was given the complete assessment by BBC journalist Phil McNulty: “There have been peaks and troughs in that career, but it is unlikely a man whose quiet exterior masks a fierce passion and determination to succeed is ready to walk away from management at a relatively young age.”

Lo and behold, he joined Southampton and for Celtic’s sake, they will have to hope he is ready to jump back in and take on the Hoops hot seat after some more time away.

His overachievements are notable on his CV but it’s the coaching that stands him apart from Lennon, someone who is reportedly still using Brendan Rodgers’ training methods.

It’s long been suggested that Lennon needs to balance his coaching staff properly and bring in his own men, but that wouldn’t be a problem with Hughes.

That’s because, in every job he’s had, he’s been joined by the same two people - Mark Bowen and Eddie Niedzwiecki.

In terms of banishing the nightmare Lennon appears to be having at Lennoxtown, Hughes would be pretty perfect.

He already has a structure and a balanced coaching staff – something Lennon has never had.

In other news, Celtic should regret missing out on their next Arzani...