Campbell took 200m silver at the 2000 Sydney Olympics

Jackson hit out at the standards of British sprinting earlier this week.

But Campbell said Jackson's remarks were "unprofessional" and could hit the confidence of younger team members.

"He can criticise me, that's fine, But he should know athletics is about confidence. If you aren't confident, performance levels drop," he said.

Jackson missed out on Olympic gold on four successive occasions despite dominating the 110m hurdles for more than a decade.

He retired last year and now works as a pundit, but his comments have caused a stir in the British camp ahead of this weekend's Olympic trials in Manchester.

It'll be difficult for a Briton to reach a final of the sprint events and winning a medal is out of their reach Colin Jackson Jackson fears medal drought

"There are a lot of young guys out there trying to achieve on the big stage," added Campbell.

"They might be thinking they are doing okay and draw enough encouragement from that to lift them on to the next stage.

"Then they see Colin Jackson, someone they respect because of what he has achieved, coming out and saying they are not good enough.

"Why can't he let everyone go out and perform this weekend and then let people make their judgements?"

Campbell was also critical of British team bosses, who have not offered him automatic entry into one of the two sprints.

Campbell wins in Zagreb

He will now have to fight for his place in both 100m and 200m this weekend.

"I am 30 now and I don't see why they couldn't have picked me for one and let me race in the other," he said.

"I would like to put on a bit of a show but you've always got to keep something in reserve because by the end of the two days I will have run five races.

"There is only myself and Christian Malcolm in that position and I don't think that's taken into consideration."

Campbell's 100m battle with Malcolm, Mark Lewis-Francis and Jason Gardener on Saturday should be one of the highlights of the meeting at Eastlands.