Hibs ace Marc McNulty on wanting to play under Neil Lennon and the player he was delighted to see at Easter Road

McNulty earned Scotland recognition during his first spell with the first team

Hibs striker Marc McNulty has revealed it was the pull of Neil Lennon which helped persuade him to move to Easter Road in January 2019.

The 27-year-old, who re-joined the club in the winter window, made the switch from Reading after a phone call with Lennon, but he never actually got to play under the Northern Irishman.

The current Celtic boss was relieved of his duties as Hibs boss the day before McNulty arrived.

Marc McNulty is in his second Hibs spell. Picture: SNS

The Scotland striker had fallen out of favour at parent club Reading after José Gomes had replaced Paul Clement. He netted seven times in his first Hibs stint.

“I signed for Reading in July,” he said.

“I think by October time Paul Clement had been sacked so another new manager had come in.

“Straight away the Portuguese manager came in and said: ‘Nah, not for me’. So that was that, out the way. I was training with the kids and stuff, out of his plans.

“January time comes and I went to Hibs. I did really well in the first couple of months, got my Scotland cap which was the plan coming back up the road so for me it was brilliant.

“I spoke to Neil Lennon on the phone. He had rang me and being a Celtic fan obviously a big admirer of him. It was great to have a chat, he sounded brilliant on the phone.

"He was like: 'Right, we'll let the agents and clubs sort it now, hopefully I'll see you in the next couple of days'.

“I think it was the next again day my friend said: ‘Neil Lennon is not at Hibs any more’.

“I was like ‘oh you are joking’. Seen it on Sky Sports News that Neil Lennon had left Hibs and thought ‘typical, this has just been my luck’.

“But the club's recruitment staff rang me straight away and said: 'we still want you at the club regardless of the manager situation if you are still willing to come up’.

"I had my heart set on coming to Hibs and getting into the Scotland setup so I did that."

McNulty had been with Hibs as a youngster before being released and joining Livingston, but there was no grudge held, just a desire to get back playing football and be near family.

He earned Scotland recognition due to his form.

He told What the Falk podcast: “Being released wasn’t really a problem, these things happen. Since being there as a kid it was a whole new set-up, whole new staff. For me it was about coming home, playing regularly and falling back in love with football.

“Not going to lie, it had been a tough few months, being down in London, training with the kids after just signing a four-year deal thinking you were going to get a good shot, then not playing games. It was a difficult time.”

McNulty was signed by Jack Ross in the summer for Sunderland and it was Ross who brought him back in January.

The player “can’t speak highly enough of the manager” and his “attention to detail”, but was delighted to see one player he had faced while down in England was not at the club.

“I think this time around Flo had maybe not been doing as well as he had been doing last season,” McNulty said, “and Christian Doidge had been flying.

“I’d played against him before and the way he plays probably compliments the way I want to play. He’s good to play with for me and I was excited for a fresh start.”