Ange Postecoglou has defended Giorgos Giakoumakis over his comments that riled Rangers star Ryan Jack.
And the Celtic boss has urged the rest of his stars to follow the Greek striker's lead and "speak from the heart."
Hitman Giakoumakis said in the build-up to last weekend's derby that he felt Celtic were better than their rivals in every area and would go on to win the league.
His confident assessment riled many on the other side of the divide with Jack branding it "disrespectful."
Celtic went on to win the derby 2-1 and move six points clear, and Giakoumakis stood by his comments on Friday while insisting he meant "no offence."
And Postecoglou says there is no harm in what he said - insisting he simply followed his instructions to be as "honest as possible."
The manager said: "I don't tell people what to think. The one thing I say to the players is you speak from the heart.
"You say what you feel is the truth in your own mind. It's not about saying things that might please or upset other people.
"f you're asked a question, just be as honest as possible. That's what I try and do and what I encourage the players to do.
"Whatever they feel, they should say. I don't think there's any harm in that.
"I know people get carried away and that by Giorgos saying he feels we're a good team, people are going to use that as motivation against us.
"If that's what people need to get up against us then I think they're missing the point of what we're about."
