Tom Boyd has no doubt that Scott Brown is a marked man in Scottish football with Kieran Tierney the number two target for the boot boys.
Last week Steven Naismith joined Andrew Davies and Sam Cosgrove in the list of players who have tried and failed to end the career of the Celtic skipper.
Since stepping down from international duty and being targeted by comments from Craig Levein Brown has been on the end of some brutal treatment with referees reluctant to protect the midfielder.
Bobby Madden failed to award a free kick when Naismith lunged in with Boyd typically blunt in his assessment of what is going on.
“Scott is the most targeted man in Britain,” the former Celtic skipper told the Daily Record. “It looks like there’s a vendetta against him with some of the tackles going in.
“Some players go out with that intention (of getting at Brown) but if it’s about trying to intimidate him it’s not going to happen. He’s not easily wound up and is able to handle himself.”
Boyd added: “The Hearts challenge was nasty and thankfully it just caught the fleshy part of Scott’s leg.
“Scott’s the kind of guy you love if he’s in your team but opposition players certainly don’t. Kieran Tierney has probably been up there as well this season.
“Some of it is over the top like Ryan Bowman’s high challenge in the Motherwell game back in February (2017).”
Despite the intimidation and leniency of match officials Brown will pick up his eighth title winning medal today after Celtic take on Aberdeen.
The first of those medals was won under Gordon Strachan in 2008 at Tannadice with the hoops skipper determined to play on- and hopefully collect more medals- for at least another three or four years to come.