After Wednesday's call from the Association of Celtic Supporters Clubs for the head of John Barnes was duly heeded yesterday, the secretary of the association said he was confident Kenny Dalglish can return the club to former glories. Peter Rafferty welcomed the temporary appointment of the Parkhead hero but insisted he had no sympathy for Barnes. "At least we are keeping continuity in the club with Kenny in charge. It is important to have some stability," said Rafferty.

"I can't really feel that sorry for John Barnes. He had a fixed idea about team tactics and brought a lot of the problems on himself. It was common knowledge the players weren't comfortable and the supporters were clearly unhappy.

"Celtic fans have been brought up on a diet of attacking football, glamorous football - but that's not what we were getting."

But former Celtic manager Lou Macari sympathised with the ex-England international. "Only a month ago he was receiving a manager of the month award. Even in his short time he has had some good times. I hope and pray he does not turn his back on football," said Macari.

Former Celtic striker Alan McInally questioned Dalglish's role as director of football operations, although he added that there would be no shortage of applicants for the vacated post.

"I thought Kenny would have been more hands-on than he has been," said McInally. "I would imagine there would be a queue the length of your arm for the job. It's a sought-after job. There's talk about Wim Jansen coming back. He has a lot of respect and a lot of experience."

But former Parkhead defender Paul Elliott claimed the club already had the ideal successor to Barnes at the club in Dalglish.

"I think the right man is staring them in the face from within the football club in Kenny but he can't wear two hats at once," said Elliott.