Venegoor of Hesselink pledges to stay at Celtic for 4-in-a-row bid

Jun 8 2008 By Mark Guidi

DUTCH star Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink last night insisted he won't be leaving Celtic.

The striker is a wanted manwith Feyenoord and Werder Bremen willing to splash out over s2.5million on him.

But Vennegoor of Hesselink wants to help the Hoops win four-in-a-row and can't wait for another crack at the Champions League.

The hitman, who scored vital goals against Rangers and Dundee United in the SPL run-in, told MailSport:

"Why would I want to leave? Let me make it clear I will be playing for Celtic next season.

"I know about stories linking me with other clubs but it is just speculation. I'm 29 now and used to rumours at this time of year.

"Celtic are guaranteed Champions League football next season and I want to be part of that.

"It is a fantastic stage to play on and I will not be walking away from that. I also want to try to help the club win another league title."

Vennegoor of Hesselink (left) believes going straight into the Champions League group stage will help Celtic get off to a flier in the SPL.

Rivals Rangers need to play Euro qualifiers at the start of the new season and Jan reckons that could boost Celtic's chances.

He said: "Going straight into the Champions League will allow the manager to build for the new season without too much tension.

"We can concentrate on the first four or five weeks of the SPL without any distractions.

That should be a huge bonus.

"From the experience of last season - when we had to play Spartak Moscow - those qualifiers take a lot out of you.

"You think about the importance of the game and what it means for the club and the supporters in terms of prestige and finance.

"So I'd much rather be in our position than what Rangers will have to face in the opening few weeks.

"They will have to battle in the qualifiers and some hard teams are involved."

But Hoops coach Neil Lennon reckons the Euro qualifiers won't stop Rangers going all out in the SPL.

And he claims Walter Smith's men will be driven by a sense of injustice at losing last season's title - just as Celtic were five years ago.

Lennon and his then teammates believed their march to the 2003 UEFA Cup Final played a part in conceding the league trophy to Rangers.

It's role reversal now with many believing Gers would have lifted the championship had it not been for their Euro run in the same tournament.

Martin O'Neill's side made up for losing the 2003 title when they romped to SPL glory the following year.

But Lennon is out to ensure Smith's men don't pull off the same achievement next term.

The Irishman said: "When we lost in Seville and Rangers won three trophies we were never more hungry than we were the following season.

"So Rangers will feel the same next season. I wouldn't swap Seville for anything because you rarely have the chance to win the UEFA Cup.

"But we thought we would have had a better chance domestically ifwe hadn't been on the European run."

Lennon knows Celts are sitting pretty with a hat-trick of titles in the bag and automatic qualification to the Champions League.

He said: "The players will have a lot of confidence.

We've done well to win three-in-a-row but you get greedy and always want more."