Neil Lennon praised his side for their performance, with a dominant Hoops side beating Kilmarnock 2-0 at home, courtesy of goals from Mohamed Elyounoussi and Shane Duffy.

It followed their midweek victory over Lille in the Europa League, and the manager believes his side are moving in the rght direction. Speaking to the media after the game, Neil Lennon admitted he was pleased with how his side went about their business, particularly in the second half.

“I’m delighted,” said the Celtic manager. “It was a great performance. I thought we dominated the game and physically looked strong. Our attacking play was good, we kept a clean sheet and I thought we deserved to win the game by a lot more.

'I’m very, very happy and while I wouldn’t say it’s a turning point, it’s a step in the right direction. The body language was good and their will to win was there for us to see'.

“There’s a bit of anxiety at times when we don’t get the early goal. That’s been apparent lately and we’re trying to work on that.

“We had good balance in the first half and worked the goalkeeper. Before the second half, I told the players to stay on it because the next 10/15 minutes are really important. We started the second half brilliantly and never looked back after that.”

Kristoffer Ajer was awarded Man of the Match for his performance out on the right side of the Hoops defence, and the Norwegian was praised for his contribution, along with fellow defenders Greg Taylor and Shane Duffy.

“Kris's attitude has been magnificent in the last few games,” said Neil Lennon. “His attitude today was hungry to play, get back and cover, get forward and I thought he was outstanding. It’s given a bit of comfort to the two centre-halves who looked really strong and dominant.

“I thought Greg Taylor had a great game as well, so we looked a good unit. We kept a clean sheet, the goalkeeper didn’t have a lot to do but what he did, he did well. Shane was brilliant as well. It’s a great skill he has, going and attacking the ball like that. He did it at both ends of the pitch. Hopefully, we’re going to see the best of him now.”

Neil Lennon: Victory is a step in the right direction