Lennon reveals schoolboy approach from Rangers

Celtic skipper Neil Lennon revealed how he could have become the first Catholic player in the modern era to play for Rangers.

Celtic skipper Neil Lennon revealed how he could have become the first Catholic player in the modern era to play for Rangers.

The former Northern Ireland midfielder was given a guided tour of Ibrox by then Rangers manager Jock Wallace in the early 1980s with a view to signing him. At that stage there was a tradition of the Light Blues not signing Catholic players.

And although Catholic John Spencer came through the youth ranks, it was the controversial and high-profile signing of former Celtic striker Mo Johnston by Graeme Souness in 1989 which effectively altered the club's position.

In his book Man and Bhoy, which is serialised in the Scotland's  Daily Record, 35-year-old Lennon claims: "I never doubted Rangers' interest in me because Jock Wallace told my father face to face.

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"Could I have been the first Catholic to break the mould before John Spencer and Mo Johnston? It's certainly something to ponder.

"My dad had a conversation with Jock Wallace in which the Rangers manager said he had known about me for some time.

"The subject of my religion was mentioned and my dad recalls that Wallace knew it would be a problem.

"The interest from Rangers was intriguing but never came to anything."

In his book, Lennon tells of how he takes prescribed medication to combat depression, which started at Leicester just before he moved to Celtic in 2000.

He said: "I had lost my appetite and I was unable to relate to people properly. "My sleep became so badly affected that I was waking up on the hour, every hour.

"I am normally a happy-go-lucky sort, a confident and strong person but within a matter of days I had become a miserable wreck."

Lennon was diagnosed with suffering from depression by club doctor Roddy McDonald and agreed to go on medication.

Speaking to the Daily Recordabout why he has now made his condition public knowledge, Lennon said: "I've never spoken about it publicly because people can look at it and think I am using it as an excuse.

"I am actually going through a period of depression at the moment, believe it or not. It's my own personal hell really. Anything can trigger it off."