GERS WON'T WIN LEAGUE, SAYS CALDWELL

GARY CALDWELL swears anyone who reckons the Paul Le Guen factor will inspire Rangers to win the title don't know what they're talking about.

And the Celtic defender insists critics who claim Celtic blundered by trekking to Japan between league games know nothing about football.

But Caldwell admitted he couldn't comment much about the 3-0 defeat by Yokohama Marinos - because he was asleep while it was being televised.

The performance was so bad, Shunsuke Nakamura confessed he had been embarrassed to be part of it in front of his fellow countrymen.

And Gordon Strachan was so frustrated by it, he blasted the fringe men in the side for letting him down and confessed the club needed to splash out on three new players to boost his squad.

But Celtic show no reluctance when it comes to making money and yesterday Caldwell posed in the new away strip that will be worn for the first time against Hearts at Tynecastle tomorrow.

The player took aim at the club's critics and went off like a scatter gun.

Even Vladimir Romanov, who is more used to giving abuse than taking it, was caught in the hail of verbal bullets.

The Tynecastle owner reckons the Old Firm have gone backwards in terms of their tactical approach and will suffer against Hearts.

But Caldwell said: "I don't listen to what he says - he says a lot of things."

And those who have put great store in the arrival of a new manager at Ibrox were blasted.

Caldwell said: "The people who say Rangers will win the league because of the Le Guen factor don't know what they're talking about. But it doesn't affect us at Celtic Park.

"And the people who have criticised our pre-season schedule don't know too much about football.

"Anyone who does know anything about the game understands football is about winning when it matters.

"We were very good against Kilmarnock on the opening day of the competitive season and had a comfortable victory over them."

The comfort zone didn't provide 90-minute protection for Caldwell, who was blamed for the lead-up to Kilmarnock's goal in Celtic's 4-1 win.

But the player rejects the idea he should swop brute force for the cultured defending he's tried to make his trademark.

And he cites Gordon Strachan as the main witness for the defence of his signing from Hibs.

He said: "I was brought to Celtic for the attributes I have as a player and I won't change my approach to the game. It might be risky but when it comes off it's effective.

"It's the way I was brought up to play the game and Stephen McManus and I defended well together as a partnership up until Kilmarnock got their goal. I was surprised when Stephen was left out of the Scotland squad for the training session at St Andrews this month but I suppose it's hard to argue with a man who knows as much about the game as Walter Smith."

On the subject of rejection, the news that Bobo Balde's return from a chronic stomach muscle problem is imminent doesn't fill Caldwell with dread - because he doesn't believe he or McManus will pay the penalty for that recovery with their place in the team.

Caldwell believes possession is nine 10ths of the law when it comes to a Celtic jersey.

He said: "I'm no different from any other player in that I turn up for work every day and do the best I can. If that's good enough for the manager, you stay in the team.

"I would play anywhere I was asked to for Celtic but I'm in the position where I want to stay and become an ever-present for the club."

Caldwell knows his every move on the park is being scrutinised in a microscopic way that would never have been the case during his days at Hibs but he swears he can live with the additional pressure.

He said: "It's what I expected at a club with a worldwide reputation.

"I might have missed the game in Yokohama when it was shown on television but I know we can turn what happened to our advantage in the short term.

"Japan can be used as an excuse for defeat or an inspiration for victory. We have to make sure Celtic choose the positive option.

"I wasn't chosen to go there by the manager and I simply did what I was told by staying at home and resting for this weekend."

Caldwell, a former Hibs captain, can expect a particularly hostile reception when he returns to Tynecastle in the green and white jersey of another club. But he reckons there's not much that can happen to him that hasn't occurred in the past.

He said: "I've done the lot at Tynecastle. I've left the park on a stretcher with broken ribs and I've walked off with a big smile on my face after beating Hearts to finish third in the league one season.

"It's been a funny ground for me over the years but now I'm with a different club and this is a new season.

"It's not an especially big game for me and unimportant for everyone else. The fans of both sides will really be up for it and it's a massive game for every player on the park.

"It'll be a good game for the fans but it's too early to read anything into the outcome of the match."

And that, presumably, is the verdict of someone who does know something about the game.

Taken from the Daily Record