RANGERS legend Brian Laudrup believes that Celtic have become so obsessed with sealing an unprecedented tenth consecutive league title this season that the Parkhead club haven't devoted enough energy to working out how they'll actually do it.
The Danish midfielder, widely considered to be one of the finest Rangers players of all time, says that his old team's rivals have neglected the process of how to win a league title - and instead have been too preoccupied with the prospect of their success, expecting 10-in-a-row to just "happen" without putting the necessary effort in.
He told the Daily Mail: "To me, part of the problem in Celtic's current circumstance is that, for a long time, all the hype has been solely about 10-in-a-row not the process of how you get there and what you have to do to win it.
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"It has almost been viewed as an event that will happen rather than an achievement to be earned. The relentless nature of that talk has really got to some people.
"There was hype in season 1997-98 when Rangers were trying to win ten-in-a-row. Of course there was. And we didn't do enough to get over the line in the end.
"However, the situation with Celtic this season feels different. Perhaps it's the social-media age, I don't know. But the fact they have fallen behind in the league even with so long left in the season and a chance to recover seems to have led to an implosion.
"One that has taken in the manager, the players and, judging from the scenes on Sunday, some supporters."
Laudrup added that he has concerns over the unity of Celtic's dressing room, pointing to the poor form of striker Odsonne Edouard as evidence that something isn't quite right.
He continued: "Players at any club do start to look at each other when they end up in the middle of chaos. You can get cliques. It could be foreign players and home players. Or older players in one corner, younger players in another.
"You want to go out and be successful, but the anxiety is always there. The cycle becomes more difficult to break. I do wonder about Celtic's unity.
"There have been rumours about players wanting to leave and others are clearly not playing to the best of their ability, even though they would always want to. You think of Odsonne Edouard, who is such a gifted striker but having a very difficult season.
"New players have come in and struggled in different ways, be it Shane Duffy or Albian Ajeti. You don't see leadership on the pitch. Even Scott Brown, who has been a huge captain, looks a little lost.
"I was quite shocked by their performance in the Old Firm game but those same problems no creativity and defensive fragility have gone from bad to worse.
"You can get a bit spoiled when you win so many trophies. It can happen to players and certainly to fans when success has been so constant.
"Maybe that was always a danger for Celtic, but surely no one would have predicted in August that this would be the situation at the start of December.
"But here we are now, with Neil Lennon's job on the line. Celtic's directors will have to take some big decisions to plot a path back towards harmony.
"If it escalates then, as a team, you just simply can't go and perform. All the hype has been about 10-in-a-row and not how you get there."
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