Kris Commons claims Scottish Premiership title race could be over by Halloween as he lays into Celtic board for “scandalous mismanagement”

Former Celtic winger Kris Commons has criticised his old club’s recruitment policy and “scandalous mismanagement” as their dismal run of form continued.

The Hoops drew 1-1 with Dundee United at Parkhead on Sunday in a game which saw manager Ange Postecoglou make do without any attack-minded players on the bench.

Celtic now have just three wins in their last seven games but Commons has refused to place blame on Postecoglou for their recent failings, instead opting to point the finger at the club’s board.

Writing in his column for the Daily Mail, he said: “Celtic have made their worst start to a season for over 20 years.

“For the manager and the players, there’s no way you can possibly sugar-coat something like that or put a positive spin on it.

“It’s a damning indictment of where the club is at just now and a by-product of the scandalous mismanagement and neglect behind the scenes in recent years.

“With the game locked away at 1-1 yesterday, Ange Postecoglou would obviously have wanted to make a change but he had a glaring lack of options on the bench.

“The only two subs he brought on – Adam Montgomery and Ismaila Soro – are both defensive-minded players and both were enforced by injuries to other players.

“I know there are a few injuries and absentees at the moment, but it shows how bad the recruitment has been in recent years that there can be a complete absence of any attacking players on the bench.”

Celtic are already playing catch-up in their quest to regain their Scottish Premiership crown and deny their Glasgow rivals, Rangers from sealing back-to-back titles.

Ahead of another busy month, Commons has warned the title race could be over as early as HALLOWEEN if Postecoglou’s side continued to drop points.

He added: “The league table is already making for painful viewing for Celtic supporters. The team are languishing in sixth place, already six points behind leaders Rangers.

“Listen, Rangers haven’t been particularly great either in recent weeks, but, crucially they are still managing to grind out results more often than not.

“Celtic’s fixture list over the next few weeks is a major concern. In the next month, they face tough away trips to Aberdeen, Motherwell and Hibs.

“Given that they haven’t won away in the league since February, the likes of Pittodrie, Fir Park and Easter Road aren’t venues you’d choose when you’re looking for a nice confidence boost.

“Postecoglou’s side are spilling points at an alarming rate. The way things are going, they could be out of the title race by Halloween at this rate.”

ANALYSIS: Celtic 1 Dundee United 1

Ex-Hoops defender Gary Caldwell reckons Celtic were too slow in possession and did not have enough intensity without the ball.

Speaking on Sportscene, he said: “They weren’t their normal self in possession, they didn’t move the ball quick enough and out of possession their intensity wasn’t good enough either.

“They didn’t get out to the ball and put Dundee United under enough pressure. I felt United were good value for a point.

Steven Naismith felt it was glaringly obvious Celtic missed Kyogo Furuhashi’s presence and praised Dundee United for sticking to their game plan, despite conceding an early goal.

He admitted: “When you are a bit fragile as a team, Celtic scoring the early goal will have relaxed everybody but Dundee United deserve credit for coming straight back.

“As their manager said, they didn’t chance tactics. They got bodies into Celtic’s half; assisted by how poor Celtic were at their pressing. There was no urgency in their play. They were missing Kyogo’s driving presence.”