‘The only player they’ve signed I’ve heard of is Bruno Alves...’
From Back Page Treble Invincible campaign, two 5-1 derby demolitions, a couple of semi-final wins and a staggering 39-point gap between the sides in the league proves they are streets ahead.
And Griffiths reckons the lippy Light Blues have failed to learn lessons from last season when Joey Barton boasted he would be the No.1 player in Scotland only for his Ibrox spell to quickly end in disaster.
Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers claimed last season Rangers were bullish in their title talk with claims they were “Going for 55”.
And Griffiths insists only one team did their talking on the park and reckons King is making the same mistake again.
The Ibrox chairman said this week: “In footballing terms I don’t think Celtic are as far ahead as they could have been – certainly with our new signings.”
But Griffiths hit back at King and also claimed Bruno Alves is the only one of a raft of the foreign imports at Rangers that he has even heard of.
He said: “If he thinks we should be further ahead then he’s mad. How much further away does he want us to be?
“Thirty-nine points, two 5-1 gubbings – one at home and one away – beaten in two cup semi-finals. Can you ask for a bigger gulf than that?
“They finished third and were touted at the start of the season to win the league.
“They had Joey Barton saying he was going to be the best player in the league and he lasted a few months then vanished back down the road.
“We just carried out our business professionally and respectfully and at the end of the season we reaped the rewards with a domestic treble and unbeaten. Instead of talking about us he should be concentrating on them. He’s got a new manager and he has his own mindset that he wants to bring in players.
“The chairman should be focusing on that rather than us and bridging the gap between us and them.
“But behind the scenes we have our own motivation. We have three trophies to defend and we know how difficult it will be.
“We have big games before the league starts and we have to make sure we do well in them first and then we want to get off to a flyer.”
King also claimed last season’s 5-1 hammering at Ibrox was a good thing for new boss Pedro Caixinha as he learned his players weren’t up to the job.
But Griffiths, speaking as the Ladbrokes Premiership fixtures were announced, said: “You can’t get beaten 5-1 and say it’s a good thing no matter who you are.
“The Celtic fans enjoyed that day and we proved it should have been more than 5-1 really. They got off lightly.
“That’s 90 minutes of football and we only wanted three points regardless of the scoreline – be it 1-0, 2-0 or 5-1. We did the business, clapped the supporters at the end of the game and went home happy.”
Caixinha has brought in seven foreign imports but Griffiths added: “The only recognised player I’ve heard of is Bruno Alves.
“He is a good, solid defender and playing in the Confederations Cup. He will be a good addition.
“I can’t say the same for the rest of them because I’ve never heard of them. We’ll soon see how quickly they adapt to the Scottish game and if they can then good luck to them.”