The giant ghosts of the Hoops’ illustrious past greet visitors to Celtic Park these days.

And yet, those inside the stadium yesterday afternoon could be forgiven a feeling that they were being haunted by the grim and dark days of the club, as the storyboard of the late 1980s and early 90s seemed to replay itself.

Granted, those teams and those seasons did not end with Celtic lifting the league title – those of a certain vintage will recall the six successive campaigns without a glimmer of any kind of silverware -but there was so much on and off the park against Ross County that was quietly reminiscent of those desperate chapters.

The angry banners protesting against the board, the eerie quiet of the terraces as the sound of the player’s voices occasionally rose and fell into the April sunshine, and the insipid performance of a squad of players that is performing well below their collective worth all contributed to the growing sense of disquiet around the club.

The chasm between supporters and boardroom has yawned that little bit wider this season and Sunday’s game provided the platform to air some grievances.

Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell’s name may have been misspelt, but there was no escaping the message they was fired across the bows. “Lawell and Desmond’s legacy, empty jerseys, empty hearts, empty dreams, empty seats.”

If it went over the board’s head, it most certainly did not go over Leigh Griffiths’.

The striker punctured an atmosphere that was akin to a large sulk when he lashed home an exquisite strike after just 23 minutes after he collected from Colin-Kazim Richards on the edge of the box and whipped an effort high into the top corner.

It was his celebration that was most telling, as he lifted the ball and booted it into the Lisbon Lions’ stand, the area of the stadium which houses the Green Brigade. Clearly, the “empty jerseys” taunt was not well received from a player who is now just two goals shy of becoming the first Celtic player to net 40 goals in one season since Henrik Larsson achieved the same feat in season 2003-2004.

Even in celebration, there was anger.

And afterwards Deila insisted that it had an impact on the players.

“It is not helping them, I can assure you of that,” he said. “You can see that in some of the confidence of the boys but this is the circumstances now and I can also understand the fans, but it doesn't help them.

“A lot has happened this week and it is more than what is happening in the park. It is not easy to play under but it is something we have to deal with. Now we have to stick together, work really hard, have fun in the last four games, get the best out of each other and now we know we have a lot of quality to get over the line and also in a good way.”

The tempo of the anger increased as Celtic allowed the game to drift away from them, a scenario that has been played out over and over again this season. Liam Boyce sounded notice that Ross County were not bowing out gracefully when he beat the offside trap to get in a free header, but it was a warning that the Parkhead side did not take.

Griffiths had tried to put Celtic further ahead with a couple of half chances, but County levelled proceedings when Stewart Murdoch netted with a long-range effort, much to Craig Gordon’s chagrin – the Hoops keeper felt that there was an offside issue in the build-up to the goal.

The decision to put on Kris Commons with little over ten minutes of regulation time remaining almost took the roof off the stadium as the Hoops fans reacted to a player they feel has not been given a justifiable run this season.

There will be massive changes at Celtic this summer and on the evidence of recent months, there desperately needs to be. At the minute, this is a club that ought to count their lucky stars for if Aberdeen had had anything about them this season, they would have put this limp Celtic side under genuine pressure.

All the evidence suggest this Celtic side simply don’t have the backbone to stand up to any kind of scrutiny.

They started yesterday’s game as a team 9 points clear at the top of the league and pushing for a fifth successive title but it was a performance, like so many performances this season, that lacked gusto, verve, belief and conviction.

In that second period as the crowd got on Celtic’s back and the game started to ebb away from Celtic, there was no indication from the Hoops dugout that they could make the required changes to turn the tide.

By the time Commons was put on, the clock was already ticking loudly in the background.

Deila’s side could still win the title at Tynecastle next week, but that scenario requires a favour from Motherwell who play Aberdeen at Pittodrie. Had Celtic looked after themselves against Ross County they could have won it off their own back. It is a situation that perfectly encapsulates what has been a flaccid and spiritless campaign.

Lawwell, who copped much of the anger from the fans yesterday , went into the dressing room after the game and it is unlikely it was to offer any congratulations for a point gained.

“We speak together all the time so it is nothing new,” insisted Deila. “It is not like I am going to quit tomorrow. I am going to stay here for the rest of the season and do everything to get over the line and perform better than we did today.”