ARTUR BORUC has ridden to Celtic's rescue once again - paradoxically, not with another series of wonder saves, but with more high-profile blunders.

Manager Gordon Strachan and the Parkhead board had headed into this transfer window fearing the Polish goalkeeper would attract the kind of offers that they would find hard to ignore, or which at least would unsettle the man rated in the £15million bracket not so long ago. ONE BY ONE

By Darrell King

BORUC Shambolic Another shocker from the Pole who appears to be crumbling this season. Fresh-air kick allowed Dundee to score an easy opener and then he almost threw them an equaliser when he dropped a cross in the dying minutes.

CADDIS Enthusiastic Question marks may always be there because of his lack of physical stature. But he has a fair bit of pace and will improve.

LOOVENS Ropey Big Dutchman doesn't benefit from missing three or four games then being asked to step in. Ponderous in the first half and not too clever in his decision making. Yet to convince he was worth £2.5m.

McMANUS OK Big skipper doesn't look as comfortable with Loovens by his side as he does when Caldwell is there. But he recovered from dodgy opening spell to sort things out although there was only one Dundee striker to deal with.

NAYLOR Erratic At times his slide-rule passes are excellent and he can be a threat going forward. Other times passing and crosses are woeful.

McGEADY Relieved All eyes were on the him after his month in the cold. Looked a bit nervy at times and hadn't shone until his stunning goal - which reminded everyone what he has in the locker.

CROSAS Poor Needs games. Far better than the showing he put on at the weekend. Normal high standard of passing not evident and almost every pass he made in the first period was wayward. Injury lay-off has clearly affected him.

BROWN Superb Dragged his side up by their boot-laces as they struggled to get back on level terms. Made the equaliser for himself and just has boundless energy. A man bang in form.

NAKAMURA Absent For me he had the look of a man who would rather be anywhere else in the world as the rain lashed down and the Dundee players snapped into him. Has to maybe put himself first before the team with injuries.

McDONALD Selfish Not the player of last season and allowing the frustrations of not moving up the goal charts to cloud his judgement in certain attacking situations.

HESSELINK Immobile First start for a while but was well shackled by Dens backline. Looks to really be slowing up as injuries take their toll.

ROBSON Energetic Came on for Crosas and put in a trademark good shift.

SAMARAS Quiet Did nothing but hook one good chance wide after replacing Hesselink.

STRACHAN Disgruntled Scowled for long parts of the day as his men struggled to shake off their lethargy. Goals came at right time, but he must have known that level of performance against an SPL team would have led to problems.

However, after another Artur in Blunderland' episode during the 2-1 Scottish Cup win over Dundee, who could possibly contemplate making any kind of bid for Boruc, let alone one which could not be refused?

Having gifted Dundee the opening goal after a horrendous error saw the keeper completely miss a clearance to allow Colin McMenamin a free tap over the line, then another major mistake in the dying minutes when he dropped a simple lob forcing Glenn Loovens to hoof the ball clear to prevent an equalising goal, the only manager volunteering to work with Boruc is his present boss.

But there won't be any more arms round the shoulder of the man who is doing little to earn his £1m-plus per season pay packet.

That approach has been tried after high-profile and costly gaffes against Rangers and Hibs, without the response which would encourage Strachan to continue with this particular tactic.

This time Boruc will be ordered to work his way back to form and condition, and extra training sessions will be the order of the day between now and Sunday's SPL game at Aberdeen.

Only when Boruc shows the required improvement will the double-time stop, and it is his attitude which will be monitored most closely.

The swaggering Pole's confidence has never been in danger, unlike his reputation.

Indeed, this could be a major part of the problem with the complex character who appears, on the surface at any rate, to be the only one unperturbed by his form this season.

The lack of serious competition for his first-team place - no disrespect to Mark Brown, but Boruc does not feel the breath of his challenge on the back of his brass neck - is one of the reasons the wholly-frustrating goalie continues to live in the comfort zone.

The Bosman signing of friend Lukasz Zaluska to offer serious competition is intended to serve an eviction notice on Boruc from this dangerous area, not from the team.

But unless Celtic can accelerate Zaluska's arrival to this window rather than the summer, Boruc could cost the club a lot - and not just in terms of the rapidly-diminishing value once attached to the man who starred at last summer's Euro Finals.

The Co-operative Insurance League Cup semi-final between Celtic and Dundee United on January 28 is a serious complication with regard to persuading United to let their keeper move West ahead of schedule.

But, after the two keepers stand Poles apart at Hampden, the window remains open for five days.

Unless Craig Levein's side are looking at a cup final appearance in March, a six-figure offer to move Zaluska early could be considered good business for both clubs.

It would certainly deliver a declaration of intent to Boruc. Whether he would heed it or not remains the $64,000 question.

That's a few weeks down the line. The immediate message will be handed to Boruc by Strachan and goalie coach Jim Blyth when training resumes tomorrow following a couple of days in which to reflect on how close he came to costing Celtic a place in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup.

Strachan said: "Whenever I had a bad time in football it was quite simple - I worked harder.

"It might not have made me play better, but it did make me feel better about myself.

"Artur will be asked to do the same. He does come across as though nothing worries him. If you met him tomorrow you'd never think he had come away with that haymaker of a right foot on Saturday.

"But I speak to all the players all the time. So I'll be speaking to Artur."

Boruc must recognise the situation has become so bad that his mistakes are having an adverse effect not only on his reputation, but on the performance of the men who play in front of him.

They are doing their best not to allow situations develop where their keeper is required to perform even the most basic of tasks.

It is no longer a shock when he makes a mistake. In fact, it is now a surprise when he gets through 90 minutes without delivering at least one heart-stopping moment for the fans who revered now and who now have cause to fear him.

The situation in which Boruc placed the team during the cup tie against Dundee is simply not acceptable.

The fact Scott Brown and Aiden McGeady scored two good goals later in the first half should not be allowed to detract from the gravity of the latest blunder.

Only 23,070 fans paid to see Boruc's fresh-air swipe and his case of dropsy in the closing minutes, making it more like the Homestaying Scottish Cup than the Homecoming version the Scottish Executive are trying to promote.

But the pictures have been beamed all around the world to be viewed in astonishment by more than just stunned Scots, relegating the return of McGeady to the team after his club ban to little more than an aside.

Strachan handled the case of the errant midfielder well. How he reverses the decline of Boruc will be even more challenging, not to mention important. NEED TO KNOW

Was it a good game? The fact Dundee were gifted the lead after just 14 minutes promised to make it a day to remember. But Celtic recovered from that shock and got into the lead before the break with goals from Scott Brown and Aiden McGeady. In horrendous conditions - for players and fans alike - the game fizzled out, despite Artur Boruc's blundering attempt to keep it interesting near the end. Dundee left it too late to have a real go. Had they shown more bravery earlier on, they may have been rewarded.

Strachan made several changes. Did it show? The return of McGeady helped as he clearly wanted to show he had something to offer. Glenn Loovens slotted in well alongside Stephen McManus, but Paul Caddis looked nervous at right back and Marc Crosas did not influence the game much.

Who was Celtic's star man? McGeady made a good return, but was outshone by Brown, who gave another impressive performance powering through the midfield.

And Dundee's best player? The experienced Jim Lauchlan took the honours for a resolute display, though Rab Douglas pushed him close with excellent handling in difficult conditions.

What about the ref? On a tricky surface, Calum Murray had to make allowances for the players' challenges. He did this well, bringing out the book only once, for Brown.

Who's up next? Celtic face a tough trip to Aberdeen on Sunday.