Celtic took disciplinary action against Efe Ambrose in
the hours before Wednesday night's Champions League exit to Juventus after the
defender missed the team bus to a training session and had to make his own way
there in a taxi.
Manager Neil Lennon insisted the Nigerian international
was not dropped for the 2-0 defeat in Turin because of that – Ambrose was a
substitute and played only in the second half – but his anger was obvious as he
was reluctant to answer questions about the 24-year-old's behaviour. Celtic
went out 5-0 over the two legs, their heaviest aggregate defeat in Europe, and
Ambrose's personal horror show continued when he missed a fine chance to score
with a header. Ambrose has been an important player for Celtic this season but
he was at fault in two of Juventus's goals in the first leg and, earlier in the
campaign, had almost missed the team's flight to Barcelona after forgetting his
passport.
"There was disciplinary action taken against
him," said Lennon of Wednesday's incident. "The bus left without
Ambrose when he failed to appear on time. It wouldn't have affected the team
selection.
