Former Celtic stalwart Mick McCarthy has praised Cameron Carter-Vickers and Carl Starfelt, pinpointing the defensive duo as vital to the Hoops' success.

The former defender was part of the Parkhead side's League and Scottish Cup double-winning season in their Centenary year of 1988.

That team conceded just 23 goals in 44 matches, so McCarthy knows a solid defensive partnership when he sees one.

He said: "Celtic keep the ball for a lot of the time in the domestic games and they dominate possession in most matches.

"The art of being a good defender is when you have possession and you are still alert and you don't get caught out at the back of the pack.

"Also when there is a bit of an onslaught going on, can you clear your lines and get to the ball with your head?

"As a Celtic defender, you can switch off because you don't see a lot of the ball and it is at the opposite end of the pitch most of the time but when the questions are asked of you then it is up to you to do your job.

"Celtic have won the title for the past two seasons, so in that respect, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Carl Starfelt are doing their jobs properly."

McCarthy, who had spells in charge of clubs such as Ipswich and Wolves, also opened up on the importance of managers being able to have faith in their defence.

He identified the leadership qualities that those at the back need to have and feels that the next Celtic boss has a defensive pairing they can trust.

"Any manager wants to work with a central defensive pairing that can stop balls from going into the net," he continued.

"Sometimes a manager trusts a partnership over and above another player that might well be better. You might have another footballer who is quicker and a bit more dangerous with the ball at his feet but the partnership between your two centre-backs is what is actually keeping the ball out of your net.

READ MORE: The Celtic tactical tweaks Brendan Rodgers could implement

"People always see what you are not good at. For any coach or manager, the skill is seeing what you are good at.

"I think I proved as a manager that you can get the good things out of the others in the team. Even if that means cajoling them or bollocking them.

"The results are usually the same. It is what you bring to the team that matters not what you haven't got.

"As a manager and a coach, I always try and see the goodness in players and focus on what they are good at rather than what they're not good at.

"That seems to be what's happening at Celtic with Carter-Vickers and Starfelt. That certainly appears to be the case domestically.

"Any new manager coming into the club will embrace the good things and the two at the back of the pack are a pretty solid pairing for Celtic."