Browns career not in danger says Lennon

18 October 2012 18:48

Celtic manager Neil Lennon insists Scott Brown's career is not in danger even though the Scotland midfielder has to have an injection before every match.

Hoops captain Brown is struggling to deal with a hip injury which shows no signs of improving and has been used sparingly this season.

Even with extra rest, the 27-year-old still finds it hard to get through matches and his last appearance - for Scotland in Friday's World Cup qualifier against Wales - ended at half-time due to the pain from the injury.

Brown was unable to recover in time to play in Scotland's 2-0 defeat against Belgium on Tuesday and is unlikely to feature when Celtic face St Mirren on Saturday.

However, Lennon hopes to have Brown available for next week's Champions League clash with Barcelona in the Nou Camp, but asked if there could be any concerns about the player in the long-term he said: "That would be a decision for the medical team.

"If they were to feel it is a long-term problem then they would shut him down automatically.

"We would not put his career or his future in jeopardy at all. But the medical team seem to think he can cope with this at the minute.

"He gets rest and recovery in between games. He gets treatment, an injection before games and plays.

"For me, Scott is playing the best football of his career. It is just unfortunate that he has a significant problem.

"Speaking to the medical team, the only solution is a concerted period of rest.

"But he wanted to play for Scotland and we won't stand in his way of that but he was feeling sore even in the warm-up.

"The majority of games he comes through unscathed but the days after the game are a huge problem for him in terms of discomfort and pain."

Source: AFP