Ally McCoist was taken aback when questioned about potentially supporting Celtic in secret if their outcome benefited Rangers.

Here is a paraphrased summary of the key points:

Ally McCoist, the legendary Rangers player, was taken aback when asked by host Jeff Stelling on talkSPORT whether he would “secretly cheer on” Celtic if their result ended up benefiting Rangers.

The discussion arose in the context of rival supporters sometimes needing their team’s competitors to win, such as Arsenal fans hoping Tottenham can beat Manchester City to boost Arsenal’s title hopes.

Stelling posed the hypothetical question to McCoist about whether he would covertly support Celtic if it helped Rangers. McCoist was aghast at the suggestion, stating that would be “taking it to the extreme.”

Instead, the popular co-commentator McCoist said he would only ever “grudgingly accept” a Celtic victory, rather than actively cheer them on in secret, even if it aided Rangers. He made it clear his loyalty lies firmly with the Ibrox club.

Here is a paraphrased summary of the key points:

Ally McCoist recently admitted that he would never want Celtic to completely fall out of the top flight of Scottish football, even though they are Rangers’ fierce rivals.

When questioned about whether he would enjoy seeing Celtic drop down the divisions, similar to what happened with Rangers, McCoist rejected that scenario. He said he would miss the intensity and excitement of the iconic Old Firm derby matches too much.

McCoist stated that he would be content with Celtic finishing in the bottom three of the league, but he doesn’t want them to completely fall out of the top flight. He acknowledged that when Rangers were relegated to the third division, their rivals missed the special atmosphere of the Old Firm clashes.

The pundit used the example that Liverpool fans wouldn’t want Everton to be unsuccessful, as the Merseyside derby is such a significant fixture. Similarly, McCoist values the importance of the Rangers-Celtic rivalry, even as a diehard Rangers supporter.