Neil Lennon believes this could be Paddy McCourt's breakthrough season at Celtic after watching the 25-year-old light up the friendly win at Cork City.
Irish playmaker McCourt scored a stunning solo goal in Wednesday night's 1-0 victory at Turner's Cross Stadium which saw Lennon take charge of the team.
McCourt's debut season saw him make only fleeting first-team appearances but he has already come off the bench twice this term in the Champions League play-off defeat to Arsenal.
Reserve team coach Lennon told his club's official website: "He's a maverick really and some of the stuff he does with a ball is tremendous. He does things off the cuff and his goal showed that.
"He's a talented boy and he can only get better. Paddy is still learning the game at the professional level but he is a stand-out player at times. There is no doubt about that.
"How far can he go? That's up to Paddy really. If he keeps progressing the way he is, then he'll do well. He's already caught the manager's eye and he has come off the bench a few times this season."
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Say what you like about Strachan, but there were lots of guys he brought in that showed promise. Only problem being, Strachan never really gave them a chance if they didn't become "teacher's pet". Take Massimo Donati, for example.. Started out well (I watched him against QPR at Loftus Road), then just " faded into oblivion", with him ultimately becoming unhappy at Celtic. By the time Mowbray came in and got Donati playing proper football again, it was too late! Donati had already convinced himself that he'd be better served by returning to Italy. I think McCourt was starting to suffer under Strachan as well, but hopefully the coaching staff (Lennon, Mowbray, Grant, and Venus) will nurture Paddy's gifts, and we'll see a real good player. Strachan wanted his team to play the "Strachan way", or the "celtic way", but very seldom the PLAYER'S NATURAL ABILITY way!
Used to watch him play for Derry. One week he was like Maradona, the next week posted missing. Hope he knuckles down and isn't plagued by injury this season because the boy has buckets of talent.
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