Celtic manager Neil Lennon admits the pressure of 10 In A Row has been too much for his players, as he says he feels let down by his Parkhead stars.
The defending champions have endured a terrible league campaign but had the chance to close the gap on Rangers as they took on St Mirren in the first of three games in hand.
Instead though it was Jim Goodwin's side who took a deserved win as Ilkay Durmus capitalised on a Shane Duffy error to ensure a 2-1 victory.
The result is sure to see even louder calls for Lennon's head, and he admits that his team haven't handled the pressure in a historic season.
Asked on BBC Radio Scotland if 10 In A Row has been too mentally taxing, the Celtic manager replied: "I think so, yeah.
"I wouldn't disagree with that. They're human beings at the end of the day and maybe they've felt it more than others, or maybe some don't understand the monumental size of the achievement that could have been.
"There's definitely been a disconnect from the team that ended before the lockdown and the one that started the season this year."
Lennon was then asked if he felt let down by some of his players and gave a blunt response.
"Honest answer? Yes."
Despite the knowledge that this season has not been good enough, the manager confessed he's at a loss to explain why Celtic have been so abject.
He said: "It's a very good question.
"They just look... it can't be confidence.
"Because there's no real pressure on them and there are no fans here.
"There's a lack of belief or a lack of quality, and they've got the quality they've proved that over the years.
"For whatever reason - and it's not just individuals it's collective - really poor goals defensively and offensively really not good enough.
"With the amount of the ball we had, even at the end, our final ball, free-kicks going into the goalkeeper's hands. Just fading out.
"And that's not like us at all.
"It's been symptomatic of our season, I think."
