Neil Lennon: 'We deserved to win'

Celtic boss Neil Lennon has expressed his belief that his side were the superior team in their 2-0 Champions League win over HJK Helsinki this evening.

Goals from Joe Ledley and Georgios Samaras secured Celtic's passage through to the next round. Lennon was delighted to win a match that he admitted had been troubling him for a while.

"I have been agonising over this tie for a long, long time, probably since we picked up the [league] trophy in May. I have been in a wee bubble for the last six or seven weeks so it s big relief for myself and a big release of pressure," said Lennon.

"It was a really tough tie. The first goal was huge, if it had gone to HJK Helsinki it would have given them a massive lift but overall, on the balance of the game, we were the far superior team.

"It was a really tough tie. Psychologically for me, it is big because I haven't got through the last couple of years but we have built a good team here and they delivered tonight and answered a lot of questions."

The result guarantees the Scottish champions at least a place in the Europa League group stages.