Neil Lennon insists Leigh Griffiths can be “very pleased” with his performance against Cluj despite Celtic going down 2-0 on Thursday night.
The Hoops had already won Europa League Group E to secure a last-32 spot before the trip to Romania and Lennon left a clutch of key players in Glasgow with 18-year-old midfielder Scott Robertson making his debut.
He made nine changes in total with 29-year-old striker Griffiths handed his first start since a Betfred Cup tie against Dunfermline on August 17.
But Dan Petrescu’s side got the result to clinch second place in the section with second-half goals from defender Andrei Burca and midfielder Damjan Djokovic.
However, Lennon was pleased to see Griffiths again leading the line from the first whistle.
The Northern Irishman said: “I thought Griffiths did very well. I didn’t think we got enough service to him at times.
“I thought we were over-passing it in the final third. When we did put a good ball in he got his head on it.
“I thought his touch was good, his willingness to work was good and the 90 minutes will stand him in good stead because he is an asset, there is no question of that.
“So he can be very pleased. He’ll be disappointed he didn’t score but last night was about him getting through the 90 minutes injury free and setting him up for these run of games coming up.”
