Celtic fans should lay off the boos and support Efe Ambrose

Celtic fans are the greatest in the world. People keep telling us that and we just can't get enough of it.

Lionel Messi said so again before our International Champions Cup match on Saturday and Xavi and Iniesta are just two of an array of stars who have said the same.

And mostly it's true. The fans give the team incredible backing. The chorus of You'll Never Walk Alone, scarves raised, from a packed Celtic Park is one of the great sights and sounds of world sport.

Ambrose with Ahmed Musa (L) after winning  the 

Africa Cup of Nations in 2013

And we back the team, no matter what. It's that encouragement that has given Celtic the edge on countless occasions against teams assembled at far greater cost.

But supporting the players as a team also means supporting them as individuals.

We've all had our favourites and favourite whipping-boys amongst the players. Once, it was Anton Rogan who was the subject of everyone's favourite moan. Later on, it was Tony Cascarino and then Regi Blinker. Olivier Tébily and Adam Virgo also caused the hearts of many a Celtic fan to sink.

Just now it's Efe Ambrose. Ambrose seems to be unable to play a match without a calamity right now.

Maybe it's an inability to concentrate, maybe it's anxiety; it's hard to say.

He has been criticised on social media and blogs – including this one – and that's understandable. We shouldn't have  culture in which it is unacceptable to criticise inadequate standards.

And, after all, commenting on the rights and wrongs and villains and heroes of a match is all part of being a fan.

But when the players pull on the green and white hoops, trying their best, we should encourage them. And, so long as they are trying, that means we should be cheering them on to better things.

Ambrose is going through a tough time but hearing boos from Celtic fans when he got the ball against Barcelona was a saddening moment. It said that some of the fans there knew nothing of the values that made Celtic and our fans something special.

We should always show solidarity with our own.

But there is a question for those fans involved: what did you want to achieve by that. Did you want to destroy Ambrose, make him fearful of getting the ball and hearing the sound of derision from his own fans?

Because that's the only thing that could be achieved by that sort of display.

If Celtic fans want the team to progress, they will only do so by encouraging the team in a positive way. Anything else is sabotaging their own team's chances.

Did those booing fans imagine that Lionel Messi was listening to them thinking: “Yep, booing their own players – that's what real fans do”?

Or would he be just a little disappointed in the same way that the majority of Celtic fans were. Being embarrassed by fellow fans is never a pleasant experience.

There have been occasions when Celtic players have clearly not put in adequate effort and then it may be fair to let such players know that is unacceptable.

And I even recall a few ironic boos being directed at Roy Aitken when he clattered into Dragan Stojković a bit too hard during a friendly at Celtic Park. That was just a reminder that Celtic fans have always believed in fair play and admired quality football.

But none of those circumstances apply to Efe Ambrose.

It all seems to have unravelled for Ambrose since that performance against Juventus, three days after he had helped Nigeria to a win in the Africa Cup of Nations.

Since then, there seems to have been a sign hanging over him and little has gone right for him.

However, it looks likely that he will play against Astana on Wednesday and, if he does, he will be a crucial player.

In that case he will need all the support and encouragement that his coaches, team-mates and fans can give him.

Who knows what positive effect that might have but let's try?

After all, Celtic players never walk alone.
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