Alan Stubbs has told Cameron Carter-Vickers to take a look at himself in the mirror instead of taking 'cheap shots' at Celtic's set-up.
The American defender didn't hold back after the Hoops crashed to a second Old Firm defeat in the space of a week at Parkhead. Carter-Vickers claimed: "We played a bit too random. We need to get better at that, getting a script and sticking to it."
But the vice-captain's blunt assessment sparked a furious backlash from Hoops legend and Record Sport columnist Chris Sutton, who branded the comments “disgraceful” and “pathetic”.
Stubbs' damning verdict
And former Parkhead stopper Stubbs has now delivered his own damning verdict - insisting Carter-Vickers needs to shoulder responsibility instead of passing the buck onto the manager and coaching staff after consecutive derby flops.
Stubbs, speaking on behalf of Bovada, told Record Sport: “Celtic were tepid in the game. They didn't really lay a glove on Rangers. And from an Old Firm game, it was probably one of the poorest I'd seen from Celtic for a long time.
“If I was a player, coming out after that game, I would have just said, ‘It's not acceptable. We need to do better and we need to stick together.’ What gets said in the dressing room stays in the dressing room. I think for him to come out and… I think what we could allude to was that it was about the tactics, about how they are as a team.
“I think it's a bit of a cop-out. I think he's deflecting from his own performance and the team's. Sometimes you're just better off saying nothing. Because he's just now opened up a can of worms. If he's got a problem or he's not happy with something, speak to the manager, speak to the coaching staff.
“Don't air your dirty washing in public. There's certain things that need to be kept behind closed doors. Especially when your performances are not where they should be, to come out and say something like that, I think is a bit of a cheap shot and looking for excuses.
“Look after your own path first, do your job what you're paid for. Once you cross that white line as an individual, I've always said, it's down to the players. The players, if you looked at the 11 that walked onto that pitch for Celtic and the 11 that walked onto the pitch for Rangers, I think the majority of people would have said, I'd rather take the Celtic team.
“So therefore on the day, Celtic have got the better players, they didn't perform. Is that the manager's fault? Is that the coaching staff's fault? Or is that the players' fault? I would probably say it's 80 per cent the players because when you're there, it's your responsibility, and 20 per cent the coaching staff.
“So I think it's very easy to look out and look for excuses rather than look in and say, what could I have done better?”
Clear-the-air talks ahead
Stubbs - who played under Martin O'Neill at Celtic - believes the legendary gaffer will have already sat down with Carter-Vickers for a frank, clear-the-air conversation.
But he doesn't expect the stopper's comments to cost him his place in the team when Celts return to action against Motherwell on Sunday. And he reckons the experienced centre-back will regret airing his grievances in public.
He said: “I think it's a tricky one for Martin because obviously, when he's playing well, he's Celtic's best defender. There's no doubt about that. But he's not playing well. You've got to be careful not to throw your toys out the pram with this. It’s one where it's very much a man-to-man conversation.
“And say, ‘Listen, what was said, what did you mean by it? Let's speak like men. Nothing goes outside this room. Obviously, I can't accept that. We need to do better. We all need to do better. We all need to take ownership of that. Not just the players, but the staff as well. We'll take ownership.’
“Martin will have a very honest and open conversation with him. But also, as captain, in terms of Callum McGregor, I would have thought the captain would have pulled him and said, ‘Listen, this is not on. This is not the way we do it at Celtic. We don't do these type of things.’
“His comments would have been emotional as well. He's coming out after the game quickly and his comments are raw. I would have thought, as a former player, when he's said it, he's thought, ‘s**t, what have I done? I've opened a can of worms here.’
“I'd like to think that was the case. If it was premeditated, then it's a different conversation altogether.”
