The new Bhoy has admitted that he struggled adjusting to life at Celtic but considers Neil Lennon to be the best manager he has ever had.
It’s quite an accolade for a manager to be lauded by a player for his coaching skill and helping with their development. Neil Lennon will be very pleased to see one of his Celtic squad recognise and speak out on his skills as a manager.
Celtic view carries an interview with Patryk Klimala with an abridged version appearing on CelticFC.net. The Polish forward has made an interesting start to the season. He’s had opportunities to play, to start and importantly to score goals. He’ll know he ranks behind Odsonne Edouard and Albian Ajeti in the selection order.
No one is quite sure where Leigh Griffiths will rank, if fit. But that still leaves plenty of opportunity for Klimala in the Celtic side. Neil Lennon has been rotating players, formations and substitutes with Klimala involved.
Klimala did get a rare starting place last week against St. Mirren, though it was a difficult game for him against a packed defence. That’s probably not the sort of game best suited to his former style of play. He is however learning to adapt and full of praise for Lennon’s support and guidance.
In the article Klimala is very open about the different challenge of playing for Celtic. He talks of it being hard to adjust initially, but also of growing in confidence at the. hoops, understanding better what Lennon wants from him and being pleased with the progress he has made. As reported by the Glasgow Times:
"“I’ve learned a lot from the manager. The most important thing he’s taught me is how to play with my back to goal. That is something we’ll have to do when we face teams who defend deep and limit the space.“It was hard for me to adjust to problems like that when I first came here. But now I feel confident in the set-up and with how the manager wants me to play.“I feel like I’ve learned a lot more tactically under Neil Lennon than with any other manager I’ve played for so he’s definitely the best manager I’ve had in my life.”"
That’s pretty powerful and to some extent shatters rumours of a rift or unsettled player when he hasn’t been selected by Lennon, despite a lack of alternative strikers. It’s great to see there is work going on to develop his style and play. At just 22 he very much has time to learn. And in his eyes he’s learning from a top boss!