Celtic sack manager Mowbray after St Mirren shocker

Celtic sacked Tony Mowbray as their manager on Thursday, the Scottish Premier League side announced following the club’s shock 4-0 loss to St Mirren on Wednesday.

Former Celtic captain Neil Lennon has been promoted from his post as a coach to be put in temporary charge on a game by game basis, starting with Saturday’s home league match against Kilmarnock at Parkhead.

Celtic’s thrashing by the Buddies left them 10 points behind arch-rivals and SPL leaders Rangers and was their heaviest defeat outside of an Old Firm match in 30 years.

Former Celtic defender Mowbray, who replaced Gordon Strachan before the start of the season, lost 13 of 45 matches during his eight months in charge.

Mowbray’s assistant, Mark Venus, and first-team coach Peter Grant have also left Celtic.

Mowbray joined Celtic in the close season after presiding over West Brom’s relegation from the English Premier League.

The former Hibernian manager Mowbray was not Celtic’s first choice, with Owen Coyle, now in charge at Bolton Wanderers, approached while he was still manager of Burnley.

Mowbray’s commitment to “attacking” football went down well initially with supporters but things soured for the Englishman when Celtic crashed out of the Champions League with a 5-1 aggregate thrashing by Arsenal in the playoff round.

Celtic then exited the Europa League before the end of the group stage while domestically they struggled in comparison to Rangers, who beat them in the season’s opening Old Firm derby, with Wednesday’s reverse their seventh league defeat of the campaign.

Earlier Thursday, Mowbray seemed to suggest his style of football was not suited to the SPL and he also appeared to have a dig at Rangers, just days after saying he had no interest in playing “mind games” with the Ibrox club.

“Rangers have been very consistent – they haven’t lost four goals in any game,” Mowbray told BBC Scotland.

“They set up differently – maybe that’s the way to go,” he added.

“Maybe it isn’t a league for trying to force the game and be expansive – maybe it is a league for playing defensive, negative football and having quality up front to counter-attack.”

Mowbray had started to dismantle the squad he’d inherited and not even the high-profile transfer window arrival of striker Robbie Keane from Tottenham enabled Celtic to make a significant dent in Rangers’ lead.

Celtic could yet end this season with a trophy as they face First Division Ross County in the Scottish Cup semi-finals next month with Dundee United, who knocked Rangers out on Wednesday, up against Raith Rovers in the other last four tie at Hampden Park.