BEWILDERED
Rodgers can’t believe shock Scotland snub for McGregor
BRENDAN RODGERS last night expressed surprise at Callum McGregor’s absence from the Scotland squad, insisting the Celtic midfielder can do no more to force his way into Gordon Strachan’s plans.
On the cusp of reaching the Champions League group stage for a second successive year with the Scottish champions, the 24-year-old (below) has again missed out on a 27-man squad picked to face Lithuania and Malta in the forthcoming World Cup qualifying double-header. Speaking as Celtic prepare to defend a 5-0 lead from the first leg of the Champions League play-off with Astana, Rodgers was surprised and disappointment at McGregor’s latest Scotland snub. ‘I haven’t talked to Callum about it, but I’m disappointed for him,’ said the Celtic boss. ‘I don’t know what else he can do. ‘I was surprised when he
wasn’t in it, then even more surprised when I actually saw the squad. But I don’t think he can do any more. Gordon and his staff will have their reasons why. I’m just thankful I’ve got him in my squad. ‘I think about the number of positions Callum can play and the quality he brings. He’s a real special talent. ‘Nothing will change with Callum. He’ll go on and do what he’s been doing over the course of the last 12 months. ‘He’ll show how valuable he is for Celtic.’ Asked if McGregor can use tonight’s Champions League clash in the Astana Arena to show Strachan what he’s missing, the Parkhead boss added: ‘No, because every day you’re doing that anyway. You don’t have to give him any extra incentive or motivation. ‘When you play for a club this size, you’re having to prove yourself all the time. ‘Whether you’re a player or whether you’re a manager, it never changes.’ McGregor has earned a Scotland call-up under Strachan before, but expressed disappointment at his failure to gatecrash the national squad for the end-of-season qualifier with England in June. He grabbed Celtic’s second goal in a 2-0 win over Kilmarnock on Saturday and Rodgers added: ‘I think for
Callum, he can be very cool on the fact that he can’t do any more. ‘Listen, maybe Gordon has other players that he feels have been in the squad for longer and he doesn’t need to disrupt that and change that, so you have to respect that.’ Strachan was asked yesterday about his decision not to select McGregor and if he had any words of encouragement for the Celt, saying: ‘I could say the same about (Graeme) Shinnie. ‘There’s a lot of midfield players out there that I could say the same about. We don’t personalise it. I’m not going to sit here and apologise to every person who’s not in the squad. I got left out for more than a year with Scotland, but I looked at the squad and thought: “They’re not bad — and I’m not playing”. ‘So, I understand that he’s playing well, but out of the team at the moment. ‘There are other guys playing well. I watched Kevin McDonald — and what a good player he is for Fulham. We’re really strong in that area, so I’ve got to pick who I think is right for this game.’ Scotland and Celtic captain Scott Brown, meanwhile, has urged McGregor to remain patient — insisting his chance will come eventually. ‘I broke the news to him — I told him to enjoy his days off,’ joked Brown. ‘He might get a holiday, a wee bit of sun to make sure those wee white legs of his get a tan. ‘The wee man will keep working hard. The manager knows him. He’s been up to a lot of our games and seen him play. ‘We do have a lot of competition in the middle no matter which formation the gaffer plays, so Callum will keep scoring goals, creating chances and doing what he does for us. ‘His time will come for Scotland. But it doesn’t just happen like that. He’s trying to improve all parts of his game. ‘He’s also working with a great manager as well, which will push him in the right direction. He might be in the next squad.’