Not even the passion of Old Firm rivalries can excuse what has happened to Lennon

Bill Shankly once famously said: 'Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you it's much more serious than that!'

It was typical Shanks, underlining his passion and commitment for the game he loved.

But two vastly contrasting incidents involving managers over the past few days have, for me, shown that however deeply our involvement is with football, there are limits which dictate its rightful place in our lives and they should not be transgressed.

No excuse for it: Celtic boss Neil Lennon was targeted by a letter bomber

For different reasons, Neil Lennon at Celtic and Gerard Houllier at Aston Villa have been the subject of headlines which have overshadowed their managerial responsibilities - Lennon with the shocking revelation that he and others in Glasgow had received potentially fatal letter bombs; Houllier with the sad news that he had been taken into hospital with chest pains, reminding everybody of that terrible day in 2001 when he had to undergo life-saving heart surgery after collapsing during a match at Anfield when he was managing Liverpool.

I don't think anybody would believe what happened to Neil was acceptable; it doesn't matter how passionate your support is for your respective football club.

Hopefully, the matter will be dealt with adequately and properly. Nobody deserves that.

You go to work for your club and you work as hard as you can - and you can't tell me you deserve to be treated as Lennon has been under any circumstances.

Walter Smith works just as hard at Rangers as Neil does at Celtic and you wouldn't like to think such a thing would happen to him, either.

The fact that people outside football have also been similarly affected shows that this is not just about Celtic and Rangers.

I know there was a bit of aggravation when they played each other in a Scottish Cup replay recently, but they've moved forward from that. The police have done a fantastic job, as have both clubs. In recent years, all-seater stadia have helped a great deal.

The whole atmosphere is charged but it's not like it used to be and that's a great compliment to both sets of fans.

Football plays an important part in many lives - let's keep it away from all the other stuff. Of course, Celtic and Rangers face each other this afternoon with a lot at stake as far as the Scottish title is concerned and, being a former Celtic player and manager, I'm often asked how the Old Firm game rates when it comes to all the derbies I've been involved in.

My answer is always the same: there is no local derby more important than the one you are involved in at the time.

Try telling a Liverpool or Everton fan that the Glasgow Old Firm match is more important, and the same goes for United and City in Manchester; Arsenal and Tottenham in north London; Newcastle and Sunderland; even Burnley and Blackburn or any time local rivals face each other.

It is very difficult to qualify which is the biggest, the best, the most passionate - they all mean the same to the people who follow the clubs.

How can anybody say one occasion is bigger than another? It isn't.

Obviously, in Glasgow there is a religious undercurrent to the support which makes it different but, when it comes down to the plain football element, the passion and rivalry is no greater than the others I've mentioned.

Get well soon: Aston Villa boss Gerard Houllier

Without inside knowledge of Houllier's situation, it seems he is happy and cheerful, even to the extent of talking to his coach, Gary McAllister, about training, which is really typical of the man.

What Gerard went through when he was managing Liverpool was horrendous. And for him to come back to work and do as well as he has been doing at Villa is a great testament to him. It shows how much he loves and cares for the game.

Inevitably , there will be speculation about his future at Villa Park, but I know how difficult it would be for Gerard if football was not part of his life.

I am speaking for many people who admire him as a football coach and manager when I wish him a speedy recovery and the best of health for the future. The day he returns to pick up where he left off will be a good one for football.

Fergie knows the way to the finishing line

Even after Manchester United's win against Everton, some will say you still have to have an open view on who is going to win the Premier League.

But at the same time there is no doubt that the other two teams in the top three would be happy to swap places with Manchester United. United are nearly there and they've just got to push it over the line.



Sure, they have to play Chelsea at home and go to Arsenal - and they've got Schalke on their minds. But Sir Alex Ferguson has been doing this for years and he'll know how to manage it.



Experienced: Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson knows what it takes to win titles

Clearly Schalke's Champions League form is a lot better than how they've been doing in the Bundesliga.



They were in the bottom half of the table when they went to Milan and beat Inter with a really impressive performance.

It's not going to be an easy game for United by any means but, and this is no disrespect to the German club, I am certain Fergie would rather be playing them than either of the two Spanish sides in the other semi-final.



To be fair, he is also getting a few people back from injuries at just the right time. Darren Fletcher may be still suffering from a virus but Nani, Antonio Valencia and Anderson are all fit again.



Ryan Giggs is still there and even Rio Ferdinand has played a few games recently.

So Fergie has a few more players to choose from. As far as the other game is concerned, Real managed to beat Barca in the Copa del Rey.



They defended well and caught their opponents on the break. But the big thing about Pep Guardiola's team is they are always capable of scoring away from home.



