Lennon defends recent Celtic performances
Celtic boss Neil Lennon hit back at critics who have had "a pop" at his side in the wake of their two recent defeats.
A 26-game domestic unbeaten run came to an end when the Hoops lost the Scottish Communities League Cup final to Kilmarnock at Hampden, a week before last Sunday's Old Firm derby defeat to Rangers at Ibrox.
Celtic are 18 points ahead of Rangers at the top of the SPL with the chance to win the title against St Johnstone at Celtic Park on Sunday, if the Light Blues fail to beat Motherwell the day before, and face Hearts in the semi-final of the William Hill Scottish Cup next month.
The Parkhead boss is bemused by those who have questioned his players' courage and character in the past fortnight.
Speaking on club's official online television channel, Lennon said: "A lot of these people are on the outside looking in, looking for any excuse they can find to have a pop at the team.
"Our fans and certainly myself and the backroom team are immensely proud with the way the players have played this season and the way they have handled the pressure.
"Whoever it is that wants to have a go at this team, if that's the best they can do, they need to go back and re-evaluate the way they do things.
"What happens after these matches is that there is a knee-jerk reaction, where everything goes into hyperbole.
"If people actually sit and watch the game again, we didn't start great and Rangers scored a great individual goal.
"After that our reaction was fantastic and we forced Allan McGregor into making two world-class saves and for me, that doesn't show a lack of commitment or lack of quality."
