Lennon laments Samaras loss

Neil Lennon reckons Celtic will be kissing goodbye to £5m when Georgios Samaras walks away at the end of the season.

The Parkhead boss has given up all hope of trying to convince the Greek internationalist to commit his future to the club.

But he believes the club which manage to secure his signature will be landing a quality player, capable of operating at the highest level.

“You’d be looking at £4m or £5m for him,” said Lennon. “He can do it on the big stage.

“He scored five goals for us last season in the Champions League, he’s a regular for Greece, he’s played in the European Championships and he has also played in World Cups.

“And he has played consistently well for us and won Championships here. So in today’s market you’d have to be looking at that sort of figure for him.”

Lennon believes Samaras will have his pick of clubs this summer, and feels his Champions League exploits for Celtic will attract leading teams from Europe’s top leagues.

He said: “I think he may want a new challenge and something to get his teeth into. He would get a top-level club top eight in Spain, Italy and Germany, somewhere like that.

“I don’t know what his specific target destination is. He has had offers from clubs which he has turned down. In his own mind, he has a set country where he would like to go and play, but I don’t know what that is, to tell you the truth.”

Samaras is off in the summer and will be joined by departing assistant manager Johan Mjallby.

Lennon’s deputy will be moving on with the club’s best wishes, but Hoops stopper Efe Ambrose was gutted to discover the impending departure of the Swede.

He said: “It was a shock. I never thought at this point that he would be leaving. He has been a great inspiration to all the defenders. He had great experiences here as first a player, then a coach, and for us playing under him has been a great achievement.

“I would never be what I am today without him. He has got me in good shape, told me what to do and how to do it. I’ve been listening to him and you can see what we have achieved.

“Johan leaving is going to be a big loss but football is all about moving on. I think he will move on to become a great manager and we just wish him all the best.”

Ambrose believes Mjallby has what it takes to become a manager in his own right after four years of assisting Lennon.

“Given the wealth of experience he has had here, he can carry that anywhere to be a top manager,” said the stopper. “He perhaps needs a new challenge. He has done his four years as an assistant, and been in the Champions League twice, so I think he has all the experience he needs.

“I don’t think it’s a bad idea for him to take the next step now. The most important thing for us is to wish him well and success wherever he goes.”