‘Callum could play for teams all over Europe’

he has to the team. For what he has already achieved and the talent he has, he has shown he can perform at the top level against some of the best teams in Europe. ‘You are not taking a gamble. He is a player everyone knows is capable of playing at that level. ‘He has already shown it and is now getting more opportunities at international level. ‘You can see the ones who have gone from Celtic into the Premier League in recent years have gone on to do really well. So I have no doubt that Callum is in that bracket in terms of quality. ‘He could play for a number of teams all across Europe.’

Sportsmail understands Bournemouth are unlikely to spend big money in January and will instead focus their sights on securing a loan signing to cover for Cook, who is expected to return to action in the next six to nine months. In no rush to lose an increasingly influential team-mate, Gordon hopes McGregor, whose contract runs until the summer of 2021, stays put as long as possible. ‘He has been an excellent player for a number of years now,’ he continued. ‘He has scored very important goals. His performances not only in Scotland but internationally and in Europe have been excellent. ‘Anyone looking at him is going to be impressed. ‘It is not over the short term either. He has done this consistently well for a good few seasons, so it is absolutely no surprise that teams such as Bournemouth — and teams probably higher up than that — will be having a look at some of the players. ‘That is what comes from success and having a successful team. ‘As a group, we achieve success but, on the other side of that, people will look at the best players. It is only natural. ‘It is entirely down to his great performances that’s happened.’ Meanwhile, Celtic will decide this week if they are to take up their allocation of tickets for the game at Ibrox with Rangers on December 29. As things stand, the Parkhead club will only have 800 fans at the game, as a result of Rangers slashing their allocation. At last month’s AGM, chief executive Peter Lawwell, insisted the club would not take up the tickets if Rangers could not guarantee his fans’ safety. Discussions between the two clubs are ongoing with a final decision expected by Celtic in the coming days.