Romania ‘far better’ for Neil Lennon after Scottish offers

Neil Lennon says he turned down approaches from Scottish clubs and his move to Rapid Bucharest is a “far better option”.

The former Celtic and Hibernian manager starts the next chapter of his coaching career in Romania, having last worked with Omonia in Cyprus in 2022.

It began with an approach, followed by a Zoom call with Rapid owner Dan Sucu, whom he then met in Athens.

“I was really impressed by what he had to say,” Lennon, 52, told BBC Scotland.

“I’ve since been to Bucharest, looking at the stadium and the facilities. It’s a club that’s on the up. All of Romanian football is on the up at the moment. The national team are at the Euros.

“The infrastructure is improving all the time, there are good coaches and good competition.

“On paper, you think ‘no’, but in practice when you go and look you think, ‘this has huge potential’.

“I’ve done a lot in Scotland and this is an opportunity to broaden my horizons. I loved my time in Cyprus and I’m hoping I love it in Romania.”

Lennon lasted just eight months with Omonia but packed a lot in, winning the Cypriot Cup and qualifying for the group stage of the Europa League, with matches against Manchester United and Real Sociedad.

“I was offered jobs [in Scotland] last summer and I turned them down because they weren’t right,” he added. “I felt I could work at a better level. This is a far better option.”