Ange Postecoglou in blunt Celtic response to Rangers positives as irked boss takes player 'freebies' swipe

Frustrated Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou has warned his players they won't be handed any "freebees" in his starting line-up after their flop against Rangers.

The Parkhead boss watched his champions crash to an 3-0 defeat at the home of their rivals less than a week after being crowned Scottish Premiership champions, with goals from Todd Cantwell, John Souttar and Fashion Sakala sealing the Australian's heaviest domestic defeat of his tenure. The boss rang the changes for their trip across Glasgow, Alexandro Bernabei and Hyeongyu Oh among the surprise starters in Govan.

Yuki Kobayashi also made his derby debut during a disappointing display for the centre-back with the Hoops' backline noticeably struggling without crocked Cameron Carter-Vickers. The likes of Liel Abada and Anthony Ralston were also called on at Ibrox after having limited game time throughout the campaign. Despite giving a number of players a shot inside the Ibrox cauldron, the boss was in no mood to pick out positives from the game in a blunt interview with club media.

Asked if he could take any positives from the performance and that the players coming in from the fringes can "take and learn" from the loss. The Celtic boss fired back: "They'll learn that is what this club demands. It's not the first time players have been thrown in in a derby under me.

"That's the expectations, you don't get a freebie. So from our perspective, we had a team out there we thought could get the job done, and they didn't."

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