NEIL LENNON has been here before.

Not Peterhead admittedly – this will be his first visit to the fishing port tucked away in the north-east of the country – but the scenario in which a big club takes on a relative minnow in the cup knowing only a comprehensive victory will be deemed good enough.

Nobody ever remembers the four, five or six-goal thrashings, the easy wins that were all but wrapped up in the opening five or 10 minutes. What they do remember are the shocks, super Caley going ballistic, Celtic's bashing at Broadwood on Roy Keane's debut, and the rest. Lennon experienced enough of the latter as a player to not want to go through any of that again as a manager.

There are few, however, looking to Balmoor as the venue for this round's big Scottish Cup shock. Off-form Hibernian away to high-flying Cowdenbeath? Maybe. Struggling Rangers to trip up at Arbroath? Quite possibly. A few months ago there may have been folk giving Peterhead a chance of embarrassing their Premier League opponents but Celtic have improved dramatically since then. Were Lennon's side to lose to their third division opponents it would rank as one of the biggest cup shocks of all time.

Ten successive league wins tell the story of a team gathering momentum with each passing week. The injuries have all but dried up – Gary Hooper, Mo Bangura and Biram Kayal aside – and there is genuine competition for places for every position. Even if Lennon elects to rest one or two of his regulars, then those who step in will do so without greatly harming the overall quality. Given all at their disposal, it seems only complacency can unseat the cup holders.

"You always get reminded of cup giant killings," said Lennon. "It's the same with any big club. It is a reminder and an incentive for the players to make sure that doesn't happen. But the team's very motivated at the moment and on good form. We want to maintain that.

"We'll make some changes but we'll still field a strong team. Kelvin [Wilson] is ready to play, Emilio [Izaguirre] is ready and [Paddy] McCourt has been for a while.We've got a strong squad now and a lot of players are now coming to the fore. They're all working hard to catch the eye so competition for places is good as well. We're the holders of this competition and we got a great feeling from winning it. We want that again."

Little wonder the Scottish Cup holds such appeal for Lennon. It gave him his first trophy as manager last season following a traumatic campaign when Celtic let slip the title in the closing weeks. That day at Hampden last May remains a warm memory for the Celtic manager.

"It was important to win the cup last year off the back of losing the league," he added. "We had to finish the season with some silverware as we hadn't won a trophy for a couple of seasons. It gave the players a taste of winning and that's very important."

Celtic enter the new year with the prospect of a domestic clean sweep still dangling tantalisingly in front of them. So much is said and written about the treble in this country that it is often forgotten just how few teams have gone on to achieve it. Lennon did so under Martin O'Neill's management in 2001 but talked down the chances of his team doing likewise.

"It's near enough impossible to achieve," he added. "People think up here it's easy when you are with one of the two big clubs but it's not. Winning games is hard and winning trophies and competitions is harder. You have to be at your best for more or less every game. It's a special thing when it happens. That was my first season here and I probably didn't take it all in at the time. Looking back now I realise what a great achievement that was."

Celtic's cause will be strengthened somewhat if they enter February having lost none of their key performers. A raft of clubs are keeping tabs on a number of players but Lennon is confident none will leave barring a "knockout offer".

"I'm sure there will be a lot of speculation regarding players; there already is. I want to keep this squad together and we don't envisage players leaving. I'm not under any pressure to sell. The board have been great in that aspect. Every player has his price but unless we get a knockout offer no one will be leaving.

"If that happens we'll sit down and discuss it with the board and we'll do what's best for the club."

Meanwhile, Izaguirre has thanked the Celtic support for their backing during his convalesence from a broken ankle. The Honduran made his comeback in Monday's victory over Dunfermline and credited the fans for sticking with him.

"I'm very happy to be back playing," he said. "The players and whole team have been great to me, and the fans have been unbelievable. My family and I are grateful to the fans as they have been sending me letters, asking me to get well soon."