CFR Cluj 1-1 Celtic: Defence a 'work in progress', says Neil Lennon
- Published
Neil Lennon wants his players to "make home advantage count" in the second leg
Neil Lennon admits Celtic are still "a work in progress" defensively after leaving Romania with a 1-1 draw against Cluj.
Celtic briefly trailed in the Champions League third qualifying round first leg when Mario Rondon netted but James Forrest provided what Lennon described as a "priceless" away goal.
Summer £7m signing defender Christopher Jullien came on as a late substitute.
"We're still unbeaten, which is brilliant," Lennon told BBC Scotland.
With Kieran Tierney expected to complete a £25m move to Arsenal and Mikael Lustig and Dedryck Boyata having departed in the summer, Lennon is still bedding in a new back line, with Hatem Abd Elhamed and Boli Bolingoli taking up the full-back positions in Romania.
"A couple of new guys coming in, two new full-backs still adjusting to life here," Lennon said. "With a good goalkeeper Scott Bain behind them, we're in good hands.
"CFR Cluj scored a great goal on the counter attack. Our reaction to the goal was superb. It's a great result. We looked really dangerous. Obviously, the away goal's priceless. James Forrest is a big game player. He's come up again with a really important goal."
Home manager Dan Petrescu, who takes his side to Celtic Park on Tuesday, felt his side deserved more.
"I'm sure we deserved to win," he explained. "We were unlucky not to win.
"I'm not happy with the result but I'm happy with the performance. We played better than we expect. We missed two unbelievable chances.
"Celtic have the tradition, the fans, the players. Of course they have the advantage but you never know."
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Bolingoli needs a little bit of help - analysis
Former Celtic goalkeeper Pat Bonner on Sportsound
There were times when there were diagonals played, by the time Boli Bolingoli had got out to the player, the player had already controlled the ball and was running at him.
That's a defensive position that you have got to get right. You've got to almost see that coming. He needs a little bit of help.