FORMER Celtic defender Alan Stubbs has opened up on what it was like at Parkhead as hundreds of angry supporters descended on the stadium to call for Neil Lennon's removal as manager in the wake of their 2-0 defeat to Ross County on Sunday.
The former Hibs and St Mirren boss was working at the game in his role as a pundit for Premier Sports and says he saw a group of fans "hurling abuse" at the home side's players and coaches as they arrived at the ground, before things turned sour after the full-time whistle.
Stubbs says that he could "feel the anger" of the disgruntled fans as they flocked to Parkhead - but reckons that Lennon's job will be safe because if their actions.
He told the Scottish Sun: "When I was in my car after the game I could feel the anger outside. I was in the TV compound waiting to leave with around 80-100 fans ten yards away from me.
“The atmosphere was so volatile. It wasn’t like I was worried or anything like that but the fans were clearly very unhappy. At one point I was thinking about getting out of my car and going back into the stadium until it all died down a bit.
“But a security guard suggested I nip out the back, because it was only going to get worse.
“I managed to get away at about 4.50pm, before it really started to escalate. But you couldsense the anger. Even before the game there were fans there for when the team bus arrived.
“I saw a group of around 30-40 fans hurling abuse at the coaches and players on their way into the ground.
“Neil was getting it from some fans, with others singing Celtic songs and shouting ‘Come on, show us your fight’. But after the game it was very different.
“I just found the whole thing quite sad. Celtic is a great club and the fans are generally fantastic, and Neil has been a great ambassador.
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“I’d hate to see everything he’s done and achieved turn sour. It would be wrong if the first three months of this season overshadowed the last ten years he’s had at Celtic. I’ve been his team-mate and I don’t want to see that for him, especially when you know the troubles he’s had.
“He’s had his ups and downs from a mental health point of view and this can’t be doing him any good. Overall, I just think he deserves better.”
Stubbs continued: "I think the scenes outside Celtic Park on Sunday night have probably kept Neil in a job.
“The club may have acted otherwise but it’s like they don’t want to be seen to react to the anger.
“It’s funny because, when I was outside in the car park after the game, Michael Stewart and I were talking about it.
“One of the things I said was that I thought there had been fewer sackings generally in football this season and I put that down to the fact there are no supporters in stadiums shouting abuse at managers and directors.”
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