Callum McGregor

FOR someone who played more minutes than anyone else in world football in the 2018/19 season, and who played 50 games in this nine-in-a-row season, including all 30 Premiership matches, the enforced period of inaction during the lockdown has been a frustrating one for Callum McGregor.

But the midfielder is delighted with the resumption of training, albeit the players are working on an individual basis at Lennoxtown at the moment.

“It’s good to get back on the grass and see the white lines and get back on the football pitch, so that’s been great the past couple of days,” McGregor told Celtic TV. “It just seems to lift your mood straight away when you’re getting up to go to training. So it’s definitely been well-received.

“You’re just so used to being in that routine where you’ve got games every three or four days for a large period of the season, and then when you get to April to the end of May, it goes to one game a week and you feel at that point that you’re getting a rest.

"But to have 10 or 11 weeks off, it’s not been great. It’s nice to have the down-time but, ultimately, you want to be on the pitch playing football and doing what you love.

“Everyone’s delighted to be back in. It’s small steps at the minute, but it’s just good to be back on the grass. It’s going to be an extended pre-season so you’ve got even more time to plan and get your body right, and then when the games come around, we’ll have had a good 10 or 11 weeks pre-season under our belts.

“Everyone will be in good condition and desperate for the games to start. We want to continue the hunger and the more that you win, it just fuels you for more success and you want to keep delivering trophies.

"It’s another big season for the club but the message will stay the same – the next game is the most important, the next training day is an opportunity to get better and improve as a player and as a squad together. So that message will stay very much the same.”

And while pre-season is still in its infancy for the Celtic squad, McGregor and his team-mates are already looking forward to the challenges ahead, with the team aiming to progress in Europe and maintain the incredible form in Scotland which has seen the club win nine league titles in a row and the last 11 domestic trophies up for grabs.

“Once you start to get dates for the season and Champions League qualifiers, that’s when it’ll start to heat up in terms of getting a little bit closer,” he said. “We’re obviously buzzing to get back in and back on the grass, and hopefully in the next few weeks and months, we’ll see that progressing.

“We’re in that mindset of working where the next game is always the most important and you have to prepare properly, regardless of the opponent, regardless of the competition. If you prepare properly, turn up on the day and put in a good performance, then, nine times out of ten, you’ll win the game, and that’s been our motto right the way through these last few years.”

 

CALLUM McGREGOR is celebrating his 27th birthday today (June 14), but he’s already received the best present he could have hoped for earlier this week with a return to training at Lennoxtown.

The Celtic squad are back on the pitches at the club’s training centre, albeit they’re still working on their own. But just being able to see some of their team-mates and also get a feel for the ball has been a great boost for Neil Lennon’s players.

And while he has a day off, which coincides with his birthday, McGregor is already looking forward to tomorrow and another day of training.

“Normally I’m pretty much off for the off-season for my birthday, so it’s fallen quite nicely that I’m off this time as well,” the midfielder told Celtic TV.

“We were talking about it this week - Jamesy’s turning 29 in a few weeks’ time and I’m turning 27. It wasn’t too long ago that we were the younger guys in the squad, so it just shows you that time and your career just flies so quickly, and you need to enjoy every minute of it, which I’m sure that we’ve done.

“Things have relaxed slightly, so it’ll be good to see my family and celebrate a little bit, but now that the football’s back on, I’m already starting to think about the season. But it’ll be a nice day, a nice afternoon and hopefully we’ll have a bit of good weather too.”

Since making his first-team debut back in July 2014, when he scored the only goal in an away win over KR Reykjavik, McGregor has established himself as a mainstay of the Celtic first-team, with 275 appearances and 49 goals to his name.

He’s also won six league titles, four League Cups and three Scottish Cups, and has now been capped 18 times by Scotland. It’s been an impressive career to date, but McGregor just wants to keep pushing himself to achieve even more in the green and white Hoops.

“I feel that I’ve progressed well in my career from my early days into where I am now,” he said. “To be sitting here with a lot of trophies and nearly 300 appearances for Celtic – as a young kid when you’re coming through the Academy, you dream of making a first-team appearance.

"So to be so lucky and fortunate to make nearly 300 appearances, and hopefully many more, then I think myself very, very lucky and it’s something that I can cherish.”

 

Absolutely beautiful goal. Everything about it.

Lustig's pass, Dembele's touch and vision, Calmac's pass into the net.

A sight to behold.

Happy birthday Callum.

 

One of those players we wouldn't have a hope at buying never mind affording him, if he wasn't here.

 

He is maturing into a captain. Brown has already said it but I think many of us can see it. His drive, commitment and dedication is immense and clear to see for all.

 

That goal was beautiful, what a season that was

 

One of my favourite goals in recent memory. Doesn’t get spoken about enough.

 

It was electric, then pure silence 5 minutes later when Martinez stuck a header in the back of the net. We were on such a high then came crashing back down.

That was one of our better performances in Europe under Rodgers. Deserved a point at least.

 

Would agree. Seems like the obvious natural successor to Brown as captain when he does retire.

 

WOW, cant believe he is 27 already, time flies. would have put him at 25.
This guy will only get better over the next few seasons.

 

CM: The supporters are desperate to be here and everyone at the club is desperate to get them back in. That’s exactly what we want, to get the fans in when it’s safe to do so.


CM: "It’s been a few weeks of the socially distanced stuff, and it’s good to be back. But as footballers you want to be getting things ramped up, getting the contact stuff back and getting your feel back for the game. Hopefully the sooner we can do that, the better."



CM: "Football with the fans is what everyone wants. We’re making do with what we have around the world at the moment. First and foremost, we want everyone to be safe to get back in. And then once we do get everyone back in, no doubt that’ll add to the performances."




CM: "The boys are desperate to get everyone back, get the games back, and after having been back in at training, everyone is enjoying it, everyone is progressing well, but once the whistle blows on the first game of the season, that’s when things will start for proper."

CM: "If we have to start the season behind closed doors, then we’ll certainly be giving absolutely everything on the pitch to make sure we’re doing them proud when they’re watching on the TV.



CM: "But it’ll be great to get everyone back together in some sort of capacity, where they’re roaring us on and we’re doing our bit on the pitch to try and deliver for them."

CM on European qualifiers: "Negotiating the ties is going to be slightly different, in terms of them being one-off games, but you know that you can put everything into that 90 minutes. It’s different but it’s something we’re looking forward to and relishing as well."


CM on Gavin Strachan: "He's been great, full of enthusiasm, as we expected he would be. He’s been first-class so far. He’s taken a shine to the boys and the boys have taken a shine to him. He seems like the perfect fit. The lads are really looking forward to working with him."

 

For the love of *, get that man a haircut

 

Pleased Calmac has had an enforced break over the past 12-14 weeks.

Like KT before him, the minutes of competitive football being played was becoming seriously excessive.

This break should do him some good.