"Partick Thistle manager Mark Wilson says there'll be "no nostalgia" when he faces his old captain and manager, Neil Lennon, in this week's Premiership play-off semi-final with Dunfermline Athletic. The first leg is in Fife on Tuesday before the decisive second game at Firhill on Friday, with both live on BBC Scotland. Wilson admits he had "some of the best years of my life" with Lennon as his skipper at Celtic before the Northern Irish international then coached the right-back at Parkhead when he took over from Tony Mowbray."
""I've fond memories," Wilson told BBC Sport Scotland when asked about his time together at Celtic with Lennon. "I had some of the best years of my life there when Neil was captain. A really strong individual who demands the highest standards. I had him when he was a reserve coach as well. "I then saw him make that progression, saw the pressure landed on his shoulders as a rookie manager taking one of the biggest teams in the world and how he dealt with that.""
""I played some of my best football under Neil," he said. "I enjoyed working with him. So I understand the information he'll be giving his boys and how he can build players up to the standards he holds. "He's done an incredible job with Dunfermline. Getting to a Scottish Cup final with a Championship club is no mean feat. That takes some doing. "He's a tough opponent to come up against but these two games are not about nostalgia, about me being one of Neil's ex-players or anything like""
Partick Thistle face Dunfermline Athletic in the Premiership play-off semi-final first leg at East End Park on Tuesday, with the second leg at Firhill on Friday. Mark Wilson, now Thistle manager, will oppose his former captain and coach Neil Lennon. Wilson previously played under Lennon at Celtic, where Lennon was captain and later coached him as a reserve coach before becoming manager. Wilson credits Lennon with demanding high standards and helping him develop, while also acknowledging Lennon’s progress into management and his impact at Dunfermline. Wilson emphasizes that the two matches are about competition rather than past relationships.
Read at www.bbc.com
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