NEIL LENNON kicked back on his chair in the manager's office at Lennoxtown, and trawled through all the available data.

Every Champions League game threatens the Amazon rainforest, such is the amount of statistical information churned out in the aftermath by the team of Uefa officials who flood the grounds where the action takes place.

Everything from how many passes a player attempted, to how many were short distance, how many were long distance, how many were completed, how many fouls were committed, and how many times they were fouled. It is all readily available.

But the statistic which pleased Lennon most was the one which showed Benfica had failed to score against his group stage rookies.

Just as satisfying was the fact Celtic have a point on the board. They would have preferred three, but, like the Champions League holders, Chelsea, had to settle for a draw at home on matchday one.

Given that the Stamford Bridge club achieved their result against Juventus while able to call upon the prodigious – and expensive – striking talent of their new recruit, Oscar, while Celtic were denied their three main strikers, Gary Hooper, Anthony Stokes and Georgios Samaras through injury, the fact the Hoops could not add to the eight goals they scored in qualifying is mitigated.

Lennon wanted, first and foremost, to get a foothold in the competition, and firmly believes that, having achieved this, they can now push on with more assuredness and confidence.

He is convinced there is better to come from a group who, apart from Scott Brown, were sampling the group stage demands for the first time.

Some performed better than others, and those who under-achieved will be the focus of Lennon and his backroom staff as they begin their preparations for the next Champions League challenge, in Moscow against Spartak a week on Tuesday.

"Playing away from home is a different animal, and we may now have to get a result in one of these matches," said Lennon, as he reiterated that he wants to make a serious attempt at qualifying for the last 16.

The trip to the plastic pitch at the Luzhniki Stadium – now home to Aiden McGeady – will be followed by an even more daunting prospect, a visit to the Nou Camp.

Lennon is bracing himself for the club's record on the road to be dragged up once more, though he remains adamant that the bulk of these disappointments lie at the feet of previous teams, not the current crop of players.

The draws in Rennes and Udine last season have been followed by wins in Helsinki and Helsingborgs this term, and it is from this upturn in fortunes that Lennon takes heart.

"Historically, we are not great away from home in the Champions League, but we are hoping we can change that," he said.

"We got good results in last season's Europa League and won both of our away games in qualification for the Champions League.

"But this is a real step up to the group stage, and, away from home it's a huge step up. I am not fooled by that.

"But to keep clean sheets in Europe is very, very pleasing, and we have done that in our last four games."

Lennon has already studied the action from the Nou Camp on Wednesday when Spartak gave Barcelona a real scare before Lionel Messi saved the day.

"Spartak scored twice in the Nou Camp, so you can see they quality they have got," he summarised. "We will have to be at our best when we go to Moscow."

That means everyone, not just a few, and especially potential game-changers like James Forrest.

He is player of who more –much more – will be expected, and his stuttering form at Perth last weekend and again against Benfica is a concern.

Ironically, Scotland's Young Player of the Year did do enough to earn praise from Benfica boss, Jorge Jesus, who revealed he was the Celt who posed them most problems on Wednesday.

But Lennon knows Forrest better. And, while accepting that, with any young player, consistency is always elusive, retaining a standard will be a goal set for the 21-year-old who has so much more than just pace in his armoury.

He mused: "James will be disappointed with his overall performance on Wednesday, If we can get more out of him, then brilliant.

"He saw plenty of the ball in the second half but we only really saw flashes of him. There is more to come from him."

Forrest knows that himself, and would like to deliver when Dundee come to Parkhead tomorrow.

The match following a Champions League tie is always difficult, such are the demands, both physically and mentally, which playing at that level demand.

But Lennon trusts that, safe in the knowledge they have come through their Champions League baptism of fire with plaudits and a point, his players will now be able to refocus on the job of retaining their SPL title and moving up the table.

The manager believes any questions about their ability to compete in the top flight have now been answered, and that this should remove any anxiety or self-doubt which may have been acting as a distraction.

He said: "I was always pretty confident they could play at that level. But the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and they did themselves no harm on Wednesday.

"The expectation level from some is such that they will be disappointed we didn't win.

"But I had said to them that, if we were not going to win that game, just make sure we didn't lose it. We were comfortable in that company."

Lennon revealed: "The boys were maybe a little bit subdued immediately after the game. But it is a learning curve for them.

"You can't win every game, and I said that to them. I think we might have lost that one last year.

"For the last 10 or 15 minutes of these matches, you are always going into the danger zone, the red zone. But we coped with that well.

"What was pleasing from my point of view was that we were looking for the goal to win it right to the end.

"Sometimes we can lag a little bit and invite pressure onto ourselves. But we kept going and the fitness level we showed was good.

"The pace of the game was excellent and we will look at this and think we can grow from it."