Chris Sutton has pondered whether Peter Lawwell could return to Celtic in light of Dominic McKay's departure. 

The lowdown

Lawwell retired from his post at the end of June, having occupied it for a full 17 years. His tenure saw Celtic win 29 trophies, including 13 Scottish league titles (via BBC Sport).

His replacement, Dominic McKay, has lasted less than three months, with his exit announced on Friday.

McKay had apparently made an 'inauspicious impression' in the early weeks of his role and had come to be seen as an 'imperfect fit' (via Celtic Way).

It's already been confirmed that Michael Nicholson, formerly director of legal affairs, will take up the post of CEO on an interim basis.

The latest

Writing in his Daily Record column, Sutton expressed concern that the wait to appoint a Director of Football could now linger on.

He says it's 'unlikely', but not beyond the realms of possibility, that Celtic turn to Lawwell to head up that search.

"It’s obvious that the Sporting Director or Director of Football role if you want to call it that is one which needs to be filled at some point soon," he wrote.

"The manager will want someone in place and it’ll be seen whether Nicholson is central to that or whether that will wait until a permanent appointment is made.

"Could Lawwell even go back? Unlikely, but you never know with anything in the game of football."

The verdict

Intriguingly, when it was confirmed that Lawwell would retire, principal shareholder Dermont Desmond admitted that he had done his 'utmost, unsuccessfully, to dissuade him'. Was that merely statement speak, or were Celtic genuinely not ready to move on?

Either way, it looks like the Hoops already have their stop-gap appointment in the form of Nicholson, said to have 'a solid grip' on how to achieve their 'immediate and future objectives'.

In other news, a source shares a decisive update on this Celtic forward.