Neil Lennon offered his Celtic stars the carrot of an early summer break - if they tie up the SPL title quickly.
Fresh from securing a passage to the last-16 of the Champions League, the Parkhead manager is already thinking ahead to next season’s qualifiers.
And with the SPL title holders facing three qualification rounds and their earliest ever start to a season, Lennon has drawn up tentative plans to pack his top players off on holiday before the current league campaign ends on May 19.

''We’ve potentially got three qualifiers next season and there’s no guarantees we’ll get through them, I think they’re the most difficult games of the lot, said Lennon.
''Looking at it, we might have to stagger the season a little bit in terms of maybe trying to give them a break even this season and bring them back for the qualification games in early July or mid-July. We’ll be looking to maybe bring them back mid-to-late June.
''It’s a scenario we’re thinking about, maybe giving them some time off at the end of the season. Mind you, if we get into the Scottish Cup Final  (on May 26), then we’d have to bring them back. But it’s a scenario we’re looking at.