Chris Sutton, your newest criticism of Celtic is as daft as your last one.

There is a difference between criticising Celtic and writing Celtic off. I know that difference very well, and I think Chris Sutton should consider it before he gets too carried away with his latest verdict on the Champions of Scotland.

Yes, Celtic were dreadful at Ibrox. Yes, losing 3-0 to that mob is unacceptable. Yes, the performance was fractured, disjointed and, at times, almost impossible to watch. I have already made my feelings about that afternoon very clear. I am not going to sit here and pretend that everything was wonderful simply because I love Celtic.

I love Celtic too much to do that.

But when Sutton starts calling us “flat-track bullies” and suggesting that this Celtic team cannot play under pressure, I find myself shaking my head. Not because Celtic do not deserve criticism. They do. Not because we should ignore the weaknesses exposed at Ibrox. We absolutely should not.

It is because I am not convinced that Chris Sutton knows this Celtic team well enough to write off its mentality. And, more importantly, I remember him writing Celtic off before.

Last season, Chris Sutton said Celtic had “no chance to win the title.” I remember that. I remember the confidence with which the verdict was delivered, as though the story had already been written and Celtic had no say in the ending.

Well, Celtic did have something to say about it.

The Boys in green and white went on to win the league title, securing a fifth consecutive Scottish Premiership championship on the final day against Hearts. Then they went on to win the Scottish Cup against Dunfermline, completing the double.

So, Chris, forgive me if I am not particularly interested in accepting your latest prediction as gospel. You have written Celtic off before. Celtic proved you wrong before. And I would suggest that perhaps, just perhaps, you should remember that before you decide this team has no answer to pressure.

Because football is not a subject in which the final mark is awarded after one bad lesson. If I were marking Celtic’s performance at Ibrox, I would not be reaching for a gold star. I would not even be reaching for a particularly generous comment.

The performance was poor beyond belief. The team looked short of ideas, short of intensity and, at times, short of the basic qualities that should be non-negotiable when Celtic walk into a game of that magnitude.

I would be writing: “You have failed to demonstrate the required standard of performance under pressure. Significant improvement is necessary.”

And I would mean every word. But I would not write: “You are incapable of ever doing better.” That is the difference.

A teacher who marks one poor essay does not automatically declare that the student has no intelligence, no potential and no future. A teacher looks at the weaknesses, identifies what went wrong and demands improvement.

That is what I want from Celtic. I want the players to look at that 3-0 defeat and feel the anger that Callum McGregor felt. I want them to be embarrassed by it. I want them to understand that Celtic cannot arrive at Ibrox, surrender the initiative and allow that mob to enjoy a victory of that magnitude without a fight.

But I also want them to understand that the season is not over.

The title is not decided in September, and Celtic are not suddenly incapable of winning football matches because they lost one. What irritates me most about the “flat-track bullies” argument is that it is so easy to make after a defeat like this.

Celtic win against teams they are expected to beat? Flat-track bullies. Celtic lose to their biggest rivals? Proof that they cannot handle pressure. It is a convenient narrative, but it is not necessarily a fair assessment.

Of course, Celtic must improve in the biggest games. Of course we must show more authority, more courage and more quality when the pressure is at its highest. I have been saying that for weeks.

I have written about Champions’ mentality. I have written about the need for Celtic to grow in power. I have written about the necessity of having players who can take responsibility when the game becomes difficult.

So, I am not going to disagree with Sutton simply because he has criticised Celtic. But I am going to disagree with him when criticism becomes a declaration that Celtic cannot rise to the challenge. Because I have seen Celtic rise to the challenge before, and I have seen Celtic prove people wrong before.

I said in my previous articles that perhaps Chris Sutton should consider his comments more carefully and not write Celtic off straight away. I stand by that.

I am not asking him to praise Celtic. I am not asking him to pretend that the defeat at Ibrox was anything other than a serious warning. I am not asking him to ignore the questions that need to be answered.

I am asking him to leave a little room for the possibility that Celtic can respond. Because that is what I expect from Celtic.

I expect the players to respond. I expect the manager to respond. I expect the club to respond. And I expect the Champions of Scotland to understand that a defeat like this cannot become a habit.

But I do not expect Celtic to accept that one defeat defines them, and I certainly do not expect Celtic supporters to accept it either.

Now, I know Sutton is a former Celtic player and that he has a connection with the club. I know he has worn the green and white and experienced the pressure of playing for Celtic. But I have to say this: a real and faithful Celtic fan does not write the club off.

A real Celtic fan can be furious. A real Celtic fan can be disgusted. A real Celtic fan can demand answers and insist that players and managers do better. But a real Celtic fan believes until the very end.

That does not mean blind loyalty. It does not mean pretending that Celtic are perfect. It means understanding that Celtic are never finished.

There is always another game, another challenge, another opportunity to put things right and another chance for the Boys in green and white to remind everyone why they are the Champions of Scotland.

And that is why I cannot accept this idea that Celtic are simply “flat-track bullies” who have no answer to pressure.

Maybe Celtic have not answered the pressure well enough yet this season. Maybe Celtic need to learn from what happened at Ibrox. Maybe the players need to grow up quickly, because the season will not wait for them.

But that is not the same as saying they are incapable of doing it.

I would love nothing more than for Celtic to prove Chris Sutton wrong again. Not because I dislike him. Not because I think criticism is forbidden. But because I want Celtic to develop the mentality that I have been demanding all along.

I want Celtic to take the anger of Ibrox and turn it into something powerful.

I want the players to understand that the 3-0 defeat cannot be brushed aside. It cannot be explained away. It cannot be treated as an unfortunate afternoon that will simply disappear from memory. It has to become a lesson.

And the best way to answer Sutton is not with words. It is with football, with performances and with victories. It is with Celtic standing up when the pressure is on and showing that they are not going to be defined by one bad afternoon.

So, Chris, I am sorry, but I think you are writing Celtic off too quickly again. You did it last season, and Celtic proved you wrong.

Perhaps you should remember that. Because I am not writing Celtic off.

I am angry. I am disappointed. I am demanding more.

But I believe, and I will believe until the very end. Come on, Celtic. Prove him wrong again.

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