Lennon plays down ref spat

28 March 2011 11:30

Neil Lennon has played down his bust-up with Spanish referee Iturralde Gonzalez during Celtic's friendly at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday night.

Lennon clashed with the official after 35 minutes of the match at San Mames which was staged to raise funds for local youth teams in Bilbao and ended in a goalless draw. The Hoops boss, who is currently serving an eight-match Scottish Football Association touchline ban, was ordered from the dugout by Gonzalez and was escorted to the stand by a security guard.

Speaking on his Twitter site, Lennon said: "Ref over fussy as I disputed a free-kick - anyway we played some scintillating stuff against a class side and we should have won. Amazing game. We played fantastic football. The young boys were immense while senior guys played superbly, so proud."

Source: PA