Celtic told to maximise transfer kitty and give Martin O'Neill what he wants in quest for Champions League qualification

Neil Lennon is demanding his old club Celtic loosen the purse strings in the summer transfer market and maximise their budget to give Martin O'Neill the “best possible chance” of securing Champions League qualification.

The Dunfermline boss claims Parkhead chiefs must back the 74-year-old sufficiently with several statement signings after proving in January that he maintains a ruthless streak.

O’Neill bombed out flop winger Michel-Ange Balikwisha and on loan Freiburg striker Junior Adamu at a time when Celtic were dropping points with alarming ease during the disastrous Wilfried Nancy head coach experiment.

Now back at the helm on a permanent basis rather than as interim boss, O’Neill is expected to demand the appropriate tools to work with as he prepares to carry out major surgery on a squad in desperate need of added quality.

The Northern Irishman will be depleted further if the likes of Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate decide to move on, leading ex-Hoops boss Lennon to suggest Celtic can’t afford to mess about when the transfer window opens next week.

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He told PLZ Soccer: “There'll be a budget, whether it's the Champions League or the Europa League, and they've got to maximise the budget for Martin. So I'm sure there'll be talks going on, and Martin will hopefully get what he wants.

“As Celtic managers, we always want more. That can't be always the case. But they've got to give him the best possible chance, which I'm sure they will, of qualifying for the Champions League, and then the whole season opens up.

“The recruitment's got to be a lot better than it was last season. I'm sure it will be because there's been changes from last season to this.

“The club's more stable now with Martin at the helm. There's a level of respect for him outside the building and inside the building as well. Hopefully he'll get to be far more assertive now and in control of things.”

Celtic have got ‘right man at helm’ to oversee summer recruitment drive

Lennon insists O’Neill, who signed him for Celtic 26 years ago, is the right man to have to oversee a major squad rebuild after salvaging an unlikely domestic double last term, which included a 3-1 Scottish Cup final victory over his Pars side.

“I'm delighted for him,” Lennon continued. “He's earned the right to be the Celtic manager. I think it should have been his decision, and his alone, but now he's in the hot seat again.

“Expectations change now. He's no longer the interim, he's no longer filling in for anyone. So the pressure shifts, but he'll be well aware of that.

“He did a magnificent job last year. What they won't want to do is have the same sort of season they had last year where they were so inconsistent and lost far too many games. I think they're in for a big summer recruitment-wise and they've got the right man at the helm.”