In a striking assessment following the recent Glasgow derby clash at Ibrox, Steven Naismith has suggested Celtic played like "they couldn't be bothered" during the match.
This critique comes after Celtic suffered a significant 3-0 defeat against their fierce rivals Rangers.
Naismith, who recently managed Heart of Midlothian and also represented Rangers as a player, was a guest on BBC Sportscene on Thursday evening.
He helped analyse Rangers' commanding display and pointed out how Celtic just didn't look up for the fight despite the incentive of all-but ending the hosts' title ambitions.
Celtic had built up a 14 point Scottish Premiership lead over Rangers before the match, with manager Brendan Rodgers even suggesting that there was room for any surprise slip ups.
Now with an 11 point deficit, it makes for an intriguing remainder of the 2024/25 season, with Naismith still accepting that Celtic are miles ahead overall.
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"Celtic looked as if they couldn't be bothered," Naismith said.
"They've been excellent under Brendan Rodgers from when he came back until now. The progression is clear. They are a million miles ahead of everybody but today it looked, I think he was spot on in his comments, saying 'we lacked that edge' they looked like they couldn't be bothered.
"I think it has been too easy for them. The cup final you would expect it to be a shock. You'd think they would come into the game and be up for it. But it just lacked that edge."
