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With Celtic on the brink of handing over the league title to rivals Rangers, the announcement came on Wednesday morning that Neil Lennon has exited Parkhead.

Celtic confirmed (official website) that the 49-year-old has resigned from his position as their manager with immediate effect.

His final game in charge was the weekend’s defeat to Ross County in the Scottish Premiership and assistant manager John Kennedy will now take interim charge.

The Bhoys are 18 points adrift of league leaders Rangers, with the latter needing a maximum of seven points to win the top-flight title.

It’s been an extremely disappointing campaign for Celtic, who failed to get out of their group in the Europa League and have put up little fight in the defence of their league title.

Former Celtic strikers John Hartson and Chris Sutton both gave their responses on Twitter to Lennon’s departure:

TBR’s View:

It feels like an age since fans were calling for Lennon to leave Parkhead, something which has now finally taken place this week.

Celtic’s title bid is all-but over due to their inconsistent form, combined with the brilliance of Glasgow rivals Rangers.

The timeframe now should work quite well for Celtic to search for their next full-time managerial appointment and Lennon’s successor should have months to prepare for next season.

Any manager of the Old Firm giants comes under huge scrutiny, but once the dust settles Lennon can enjoy the fact he won 10 trophies while manager of Celtic.