BREN’S HIGH PRAISE FOR EURO STUNNER
Rodgers gets Frank about McGregor
BRENDAN Rodgers last night compared Celtic match-winner Callum McGregor to Frank Lampard and branded the stunning performance against Zenit St Petersburg as good as any his side have produced in Europe. McGregor netted a spectacular late goal for the Scottish champions in the first leg of the Europa League last 32 fixture Parkhead on Thursday evening to ensure that his side triumphed 1-0.
The 24-year-old, who was an ever-present in the Celtic team as they went undefeated and won a fourth domestic Treble, had suffered from indifferent form this
season and been left on the bench before the game against Zenit.
But Rodgers believes the rest has helped to recharge the batteries of a player who made his Scotland debut back in November and is expecting far more from him during the final weeks of the 2017/18 campaign.
He felt the midfielder’s effort, which came after some impressive build-up play from substitute Charly Musonda and Moussa Dembele, was redolent of England great Lampard in his prime.
“His goal reminds me of a goal Frank Lampard scored at Stamford Bridge against Bayern Munich in the Champions League in 2005,” he said. “The ball came over and he had to swivel on his left-hand side to finish it from a really difficult angle. That was like Callum’s goal because he had to go up and swivel on his right foot and then finish.
“He was absolutely outstanding. He can play in a number of positions and he plays them all to a very high level. On Thursday, we played him off the front to support, but also in the midfield so we had four v three.
“Callum finds space very, very well and he is a goal threat. I remember looking at the team before I came in and Callum was a young player who scored big goals in big games.
“Sometimes it might not have been enough to go through or to qualify, but he has always had the ability to score big goals and he has shown that throughout my time here as well. He is an outstanding young player.”
Rodgers added: “What is important is the squad. We have really talented players, but we have a lot of games to play. We need a big squad because you can’t play in every single game.
“Callum has played in a lot of big games. I took him out the team for a wee bit because he was playing a lot because of the injuries to the players who are similar to him, Tom Rogic and Stuart Armstrong and these guys.”
McGregor isn’t the only Celtic footballer who has struggled to scale the heights of last term. Scott Sinclair, who was named Player of the Year, remained on the bench during the Zenit game.
However, Rodgers is confident that his team, who will take on Zenit in the second leg of the Europa League last 32 tie in the Krestovsky Stadium in Russia next Thursday evening, will be able to maintain the standard they set in their 1-0 win.
“The players are not robots,” he said. “They will have games where they are not at their best.
“We had a review after the Partick game, as we always do. I wasn’t happy with our concentration.
“We conceded goals and I know people will say we aren’t tested the same in domestic football, but, for me, it is very important our concentration is there for every single game. When we concentrate and when it comes to the big games we don’t tend to lose too many.”