"All this stuff Hopkins is saying suggests to me he has low self-esteem," Calzaghe senior said. "The guy's got no guts and no faith in himself. It smacks of cowardice.

"He always says 'I'm going to do this, I'm going to do that', but he's a guy who never comes to fight and has never excited me in any way, shape or form. He's a stealer and a smotherer and that's all.

"He talks about being a legend but now the world wants to see that legend. If he turns out to be a legend, I'll be the first person to hold my hands up and admit that he's a great fighter.

"But the world wants to see him in a proper fight. Joe will live up to those expectations and perform like a true champion. We want Hopkins to fight the way he should fight. But deep down Hopkins knows he cannot win."

Calzaghe has also promised that his son, who earlier this week stated that he would only be happy if he won via knockout, is ready for some rough stuff if Hopkins goes to drastic measures to foil the Brit's lightning-fast hands.

"Joe has fought just as dirty as the dirty fighters he's faced," Enzo added.

"Hopkins is not meeting an angel in that ring. He might look like an angel but he is a dirty fighter if need be."

Hopkins himself is unhappy with the lack of respect the Calzaghes have shown him ahead of Saturday night..

His ten-year streak as world middleweight champion featured wins over the likes of Oscar De La Hoya and Felix Trinidad while he has experience of fighting at light-heavy having beaten Antonio Tarver back in 2006.

"Everybody knows what I've accomplished in my game and when Joe says I'm not really this or that, he's really lost it," said Hopkins. "That's just like saying Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan wasn't great.

"When you start saying things with a serious conviction of my track record, to me that's disrespectful of all the people who put me in that category."

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