The Scottish Premiership is serving up pure box-office drama right now, and Chris Sutton is absolutely buzzing about it. In his explosive Daily Record column on Valentine’s Day 2026, the Parkhead legend delivered a passionate love letter to the title race while dropping a brutal truth bomb: there is one current Celtic player Martin O’Neill would have booted out the door faster than you can say “last-minute winner” after his latest public strop.
Chris Sutton played under Martin O’Neill and knows exactly the level of commitment the Irishman demanded – and this player fell way short.
Title Race Hits Boiling Point With Three Teams Refusing To Blink
Nobody has a clue who is going to win this league and that is exactly why it is magnificent.
In the space of one mad midweek round, Hearts stole a 94th-minute winner against Hibs, Celtic needed new signing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to rescue them with a stoppage-time equaliser against Livingston, and Rangers somehow conspired to throw away two points when Stephen Welsh – yes, the Celtic defender on loan at Motherwell – headed home a last-gasp leveller at Fir Park.
Three teams went into the night feeling invincible. All three stumbled out looking mortal.
Current Scottish Premiership top three (after midweek games):
| Team | Played | Points | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Celtic | 25 | 60 | – |
| Rangers | 25 | 58 | -2 |
| Hearts | 25 | 56 | -4 |
Four points separate the top three with 13 games left. Anyone who claims they know how this ends is lying.
Weekend Fixtures That Could Rip The Table Apart
Saturday throws up two absolute monsters:
- Rangers vs Hearts at Ibrox – a genuine six-pointer
- Kilmarnock vs Celtic at Rugby Park – a place Celtic have not won since February 2023
Sutton wrote: “It wouldn’t surprise me if Hearts won at Ibrox tomorrow. And, likewise, I wouldn’t be stunned if Celtic lost at Kilmarnock.”
When a treble-winning Celtic hero is openly predicting possible defeats for his old club, you know this title race has gone completely off script.
The One Celtic Player Martin O’Neill Would Never Tolerate
This is where Sutton turned the blowtorch on one member of the current squad.
The player in question is Yang Hyun-jun.
The South Korean winger has shown flashes of real quality this season, but his reaction to being substituted during the Livingston game was pathetic. Head down, kicking bottles, ignoring team-mates – the full sulk package.
Sutton, who won everything under O’Neill between 2000 and 2006, didn’t hold back.
He wrote: “I know exactly the type of player Martin O’Neill wanted. He wanted men. He wanted warriors. He wanted players who would run through brick walls for the jersey.
“One look at Yang’s strop the other night and Martin would have had him in the office before he reached the tunnel. That kind of behaviour wasn’t just unacceptable – it was finished. You did it once under Martin and you never did it again. Or you were gone.”
Sutton went on to recall how O’Neill once dragged a star player off at half-time for less and told him: “If you ever show me up like that again, you’ll never play for this club.”
Yang is only 23 and clearly talented, but Celtic Park isn’t a finishing school for bad attitudes when the stadium is rocking and the stakes are this high.
Why Attitude Is Everything In A Title Fight
Celtic fans will forgive mistakes. They will forgive missed chances. What they will never forgive is a player who looks like he doesn’t care when the team is scratching around for a point against Livingston.
Brendan Rodgers has already spoken publicly about “standards” and “body language” this season. Sutton’s column is the loudest warning shot yet that some players still haven’t got the message.
When the margins are this fine, effort becomes the great equaliser.
Hearts are punching above their weight because every player is fighting for the shirt. Rangers are scrapping because they know one more slip and the chance is gone. Celtic cannot afford passengers who throw toys out the pram when things don’t go their way.
Martin O’Neill built an empire on players who bled green and white. Chris Sutton just reminded everyone that some things never change.
This title race is going down to the wire, and it will be won by the team that wants it most.
Celtic have the quality. Now they need the fire.
What do you think – was Sutton too harsh on Yang, or is he spot on? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and let the debate rage.
