Chris Sutton has followed up his criticism of Leigh Griffiths by claiming that the striker couldn’t be bothered getting fit.
Despite coming off the bench to score against Sparta Prague last night Sutton called out the striker for being overweight and out of condition.
Griffiths was the first substitute that Neil Lennon turned to in a bid to salvage something from the match despite having Patryk Klimala and Albian Ajeti also on the bench.
That criticism prompted a phone call to Sutton from the striker but on BT Sport tonight Sutton was standing his ground.
Covering the phone call, The Sun reported the former Celtic and Blackburn striker saying:
I’m not going to divulge, it’s a private conversation. It’s a crime when you have that much talent and you can’t be bothered. And that’s what’s happened. My advice to Leigh would be to do his talking on the pitch.
I think Leigh Griffiths is a brilliant finisher and a great asset to Celtic. He’d be a great asset to any team if he’s fit. It’s not my issue that Leigh Griffiths couldn’t bother himself to get fit. It’s not my issue that he’s not starting games and can’t finish games.
He’s better off getting himself in a position where he is fit enough to play for 90 minutes. It’s as simple as that with Leigh. I wasn’t criticising his ability, I was criticising his application and his attitude and it’s clear for everybody to see.
I’m only pointing out what we can all see. It’s totally unacceptable. The easiest thing for a player to do is get himself fit, that is the easiest thing.
You can’t teach some of the things that Leigh Griffiths can do. The goal he scored at Aberdeen was stunning. Even his goal last night, his anticipation in the box was brilliant.
My point is, a fit Leigh Griffiths, if he can bother himself to get fit, would be such an asset for Celtic and Neil Lennon. It’s his problem, it’s not my problem.
My advice to Leigh Griffiths would be, don’t come and tell me I’m out of order, get yourself fit and show the Celtic fans you’re an asset.
Griffiths has only started one match this season- at home to AC Milan in the Europa League which resulted in him being substituted at half time.
There are no scheduled media activities from Celtic before Sunday’s match at Motherwell with Neil Lennon contracted to speak to Sky Sports and Radio Scotland before the match.
