NEIL LENNON says that Celtic are coming back from Dubai with the league title still in their sights, as he refused to give up on reeling in Rangers to retain their Premiership crown.

The Celtic manager says that his team will have to go on a long winning run in order to cut the gap and put some pressure on the Ibrox side, but he believes his men are capable of doing just that as they return refreshed from their mid-season training camp.

“I’m looking forward to the games [coming up] and I think the players will be as well,” Lennon told Celtic TV.

“We’ve got our targets and incentives and a lot to play for still. We’re not giving up on the league by any stretch of the imagination, but we’re going to have to be really on it from here on in, and they are capable of doing that.

“It’s just about winning games. Playing well and winning games, and we’ve being doing that up until the weekend.

“So, we get back on a run. We’re capable of doing that, and then we need to make the quality count at the end of it.

The players will come back having done some good work. They’re refreshed, they’ve had some warm weather, they’re feeling good.

“All of those accumulative effects will hopefully stand us in good stead.

“We’ve done this for the last four or five years, it’s been very beneficial, it certainly was last year.

“So, we’re hoping for more of the same results this year.”

Lennon says that his side were only denied the morale-boosting win over Rangers that he feels they deserved by a poor rub of the green at Ibrox last weekend.

“I thought there was a real verve about us [against Rangers], a real belief,” he said. “The lads set out the plan perfectly and we were unfortunate.

“Sometimes that’s something that’s missing when people analyse games, sometimes you need a bit of luck.

“We’ve had plenty of it over the years, we suffered from it a little bit on Saturday, but the overall picture was that we’re pretty pleased with the performance.

“We didn’t get what we deserved on Saturday, but that’s football sometimes.

“I was very happy with the level of performance and the quality of it, so if we can maintain that standard and get better as we go on, I think we’ll have a very good [second] half of the season.

“We’re looking far more like ourselves, a lot more attacking intent and a good energy, and a really good will to win.

“As I said, we didn’t get what we deserved. I thought we dominated the game for long periods away from home, and in a derby of that magnitude it speaks volumes for the performance.

“Yeah, we’re bitterly disappointed not to have won the game, but we need to set that aside and get as many points and as many wins as we can and rack them up.”

Meanwhile, Lennon has been delighted by the progress of wingers Mikey Johnston and James Forrest, who are working their way back to full fitness after prolonged spells on the sidelines through injury.

“We’ve missed those two this year,” he said. “They are two exceptional talents, very individual talents, and they can change the dynamic of the way we play.

“Mikey has had a real bad run of luck of injuries, and it’s great to see him back and flourishing again.

“Jamesy is not a million miles away for us now which is huge, because he’s been such a pivotal player for us over the years.”