Former Northern Ireland international Lennon has admitted his father, Gerry, will no longer to travel to Parkhead again after hearing the criticism on television.

But Frenchman Agathe, who returned to the first team after over a month out with a hamstring injury against the Portuguese side, is convinced the supporters were merely frustrated.

He said: “At the beginning of the game, I was aware of the criticism but I just tried to play my own game.

“It was very difficult of course but the fans don’t hate us, they love us too much. There’s a difference.

“But we need to get them behind us in every game. It’s normal that they expect us to win but it’s a great boost when I know the fans are behind me.”

But, although Lennon insists the incident is forgiven, he cannot forget.

He said: “I thought it was uncalled for and unjustified and I will forgive it in time, but it’s hard to forget and I was very disappointed with it.

“My dad wasn’t over for the Boavista match but he was watching it on TV and could hear what went on.

“He was really upset and he told me he wouldn’t be coming back to see me play at Parkhead because of what happened.

“He’s obviously very proud of me playing for Celtic and, to be honest, it has probably hurt my family more than me.

“I’m not pleased about what happened and it will take me a long time to forgive the fans who barracked me.

“I wobbled for 10 minutes or so after it, before managing to compose myself again.

“Playing in the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup is hard enough without having to go through that.

“Personally, I thought it was unjustified, but I’d like to point out I received some nice cards and messages from fans.

“They apologised for what happened but I’m big enough and ugly enough to get on with it.

“However, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that our best performances in Europe have come away from home.

“The tension is so intense at Parkhead sometimes and the fans have got to realise it’s not the same as domestic games.

“I was pleased to hear the fans singing my name against Kilmarnock but I haven’t forgotten what happened on Thursday. It’s still very much a sore point for me.”

But Agathe has warned Boavista that his fitness is rapidly returning after his spell on the sidelines.

He said: “I’m not too far away from peak fitness. I’ve made progress from the Boavista game and, with another week’s training, I’ll be even better against Hearts on Saturday.

“We created a lot of chances against Kilmarnock and could have scored a few more goals.

“But, at the end of the day, the three points is the most important thing and we moved nearer to Rangers. But we’ve won nothing yet.

“We know we have to win every game now but when you play for Celtic people expect that so we are not under any more pressure than usual.”