‘It doesn’t wash’… BBC man accuses Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers of ‘pure deflection’

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BBC Sport Scotland writer Tom English has told Brendan Rodgers he is ‘deflecting’ from his own wrongdoings.

Celtic haven’t been in the best form this campaign, winning just four of their last 10 games in all competitions.

They lost to Dundee last weekend in the Scottish Premiership and Rodgers described his team as a Honda Civic as opposed to a Ferrari.

Rodgers later clarified that it was a reference to the lack of speed in his squad compared to last season, not a criticism of his players.

• READ MORE: Neil Lennon reveals why he doesn’t talk to Ally McCoist about infamous Celtic Park square-up

Rodgers Honda Civic jibe ‘doesn’t wash’ with BBC’s Tom English

But English is having none of it and said Rodgers cannot say something like that after a defeat to Dundee, a club financially much worse off than Celtic.

Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Sportsound, English said: “They’ve played appallingly offensively and defensively against Dundee, a club with a fraction of their resources.

“If this was Real Madrid or Barcelona, okay, I kind of get where you’re coming from in terms of the goals and the creativity that have left the club, with all these players that we’ve spoken about endlessly on this programme.

“But when you do it after a game against Dundee, I’m sorry, it doesn’t wash. And I just thought it was pure deflection from Brendan Rodgers.

“We’ve heard a lot from Brendan Rodgers about the transfer policy, about his own frustrations. He needs to knuckle down now, get this team moving, because at the moment, they are a very, very hard watch, and they’re in trouble.”

Hearts vs Celtic at Tynecastle on Sunday

The Hoops need to get a result against Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts this weekend, or face the daunting reality of being eight points behind them.

Celtic are an injury-hit side at the moment with four key players missing, so they’ll have to do it under trying circumstances.

Kick-off at Tynecastle is 12:00 GMT and will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Football.