Stephen Welsh was pleased with Celtic’s concentrated performance against Aberdeen at the weekend, and was delighted to help the Hoops record a second clean sheet against the Dons in 10 days.

Odsonne Edouard’s eighth-minute strike was all that separated the sides during Saturday’s 1-0 win at Paradise, which marked a positive start to John Kennedy’s spell in interim charge.

Welsh hailed a team performance against a worthy opponent, and keenly praised departing manager Neil Lennon for the ways in which he helped develop the 21-year-old in the early stages of his career.

“I will always have a lot to owe the old gaffer,” said Welsh. “He gave me my debut, my derby debut and my European debut. I can’t thank him enough for that and what he did for me. As a footballer, all you want is someone to trust you and give you a chance. That’s what he did for me.

“It’s all part of the learning curve for me and it’s been a difficult week for everyone at the club. It’s never nice to see a manager leave and, personally, you feel a wee bit of responsibility for that. The performances on the pitch haven’t been good enough and that is why it has happened.”

‘Neil gave me my debut, my derby debut and my European debut. I can’t thank him enough for that and what he did for me.’

Welsh said he and his team-mates now look forward to working with John Kennedy, who he described as a great coach, and is likewise pleased to see his one-time Reserves coach Stephen McManus stepping up to help out the first team.

Speaking of Saturday’s Aberdeen win, Welsh felt Celtic’s overall play merited more goals than the result on the day.

He added: “It was a good win for us and I thought we were excellent in the first half. We played the way we know that we can. We kept the ball and we were patient. We got the goal and I felt we could have scored two or three with our play. In the second half, it was the same as the last game against Aberdeen.

“They pressed really high and they did it very well. When it gets to the last 15 minutes and they are chasing an equaliser, they throw balls into the box. But I thought we dealt with that really well and it was good to get the clean sheet.

“To get through that period of pressure at the end against Aberdeen without conceding was good for us. We have been conceding goals at times in the season, so to get over that barrier is a positive mentally.”

Stephen Welsh delighted with Dons clean sheet as he thanks Neil Lennon