Source: Team_Talk
Lennon warning to defenders
eil Lennon has warned his Celtic defence against conceding yet another early goal in Europe when they take on Udinese on Thursday.[LNB] The Hoops found themselves behind in the opening minutes in the both the away qualifier to Sion in Switzerland and their Group I opener against Atletico Madrid in Spain and were unable to recover, losing on each occasion.[LNB]The Celtic boss is aware of his side's defensive frailties which resurfaced against Inverness on Saturday, where, despite a 2-0 win in the Scottish Premier League, keeper Fraser Forster and centre-back pairing Daniel Majstorovic and Glenn Loovens came in for criticism after some sloppy play.[LNB]Lennon is also aware of the dangers of going behind early to a side who are joint top of Serie A.[LNB]"It seems to be a running theme in the last few European games (losing an early goal)," he said.[LNB]"We conceded early in Sion and in Madrid and you need maximum concentration in these games.[LNB]"It is always a concern when you are playing against a team of this quality.[LNB]"Udinese are an excellent team, very well-drilled defensively and they have excellent pace on the break.[LNB]"So we have worked on a few things today and hopefully we can keep the door shut.[LNB]"But it is important that we get plenty of the ball as well and work Udinese the best we can."[LNB]The Northern Irishman believes the Celtic fans could have been even more anxious than they were against Caley as defensive indecision at times threatened to cost goals and he hopes for the same level of understanding against the Serie A side, who are sure to pose more problems than the SPL bottom side.[LNB]"The fans are just desperate for the team to succeed and play well," said Lennon, who revealed striker Gary Hooper has shrugged off the ankle injury which forced him off in the second half against the Highlanders.[LNB]"Now and again when you make basic mistakes and errors the players will be criticised, they know that and they accept that.[LNB]"But I thought the supporters could have been a lot more impatient than they were on Saturday.[LNB]"I thought they stuck with the team very well.[LNB]"After the game I thanked them for what they gave to the team and I am looking for more of the same tomorrow night."[LNB]While looking for his side to stay tight at the back, Lennon knows he cannot give license to his team to be gung-ho in attack against the Italian side.[LNB]"The onus is on us but you have to be careful because they are very good at counter attacking from midfield," said the former Celtic skipper.[LNB]"So you have to be aware of that and patience might be a virtue in this game.[LNB]"We are not going to be able to attack at every opportunity but we will try to attack from various areas of the pitch and we will pick a forward thinking team."
