REST AND BE THANKFUL
He racked up 69 games in 11 stamina-sapping months for club and country but you will never catch McGregor moaning about his lot in life...
ASK your average Scottish footballer for their thoughts on a summer break that is scarcely now long enough to squeeze in a long weekend in Largs and you could be left with the impression that it’s only a matter of time before Amnesty International are asked to intervene on their behalf.
In one sense, it’s not hard to have a degree of sympathy here — even for young men who are often earning money beyond the comprehension of your average working man for kicking a ball about a park.
Sure, they do not spend their working days down salt mines. They happen to live the dream of those who pay their wages and those at the top of their profession enjoy fame that’s the envy of rock stars.
But they are also made of flesh and blood. Many are as familiar to the pressures of family life as the man in the stand.
They can surely be forgiven for longing for a time when the summer meant tennis and golf dominating the back pages for weeks on end and footballers having adequate time to properly rest their minds and bodies.
For those employed by Scotland’s top clubs and also in the international fold, wishing for the clock to be turned back is a pointless task.
The days of UEFA granting direct entry to the group stages of its club competitions have gone and aren’t coming back.
If you want to participate, it’s best to reconcile yourself with the need to negotiate four qualifying rounds — the first of which takes place in the second week in July.
Nothing sums up the lot of the elite in this country more than Callum McGregor. A season which began in Armenia against Alashkert last July 10 finally concluded in Brussels on June 11.
All told, Celtic and Scotland played 73 games in that period. He featured in 69 of them.
For the midfielder, it’s all a matter of perception and attitude. He has no desire to rail against the current football calendar. It is what it is.
As for ‘managing his body’ — the latest woolly excuse for those absenting themselves from national service — that just wouldn’t cross his mind.
He’ll simply be thankful for whatever break there is. And, once it’s over, he will once again commit himself wholeheartedly to whatever is asked of him.
‘I’m a big believer in doing the job to the best of your ability,’ said the 26-year-old, who is said to be on former manager Brendan Rodgers’ wishlist at Leicester.
‘It’s becoming like a 12-month job but you try and take the rest when you can get it and prepare your body in the right way.
‘You’re a footballer and you wanted to do that since you were a young kid and now you’re paid to do it. So you have to shoulder the responsibility of the nation when playing for your country.
‘It’s a lot of games but you have to try and handle it as much as you can and, if you break down, then that’s part of football. I’m a big believer in that if you’re fit then you want to play and never want to hide in any games.
‘If I’m fit then I’ll keep trying to play and, if I break down, then that’s football.’
An ability to put mind over matter has helped McGregor chalk up a near perfect attendance record for club and country.
But ploughing through such a brutal schedule requires more than gritted teeth and some get up and go. An appreciation of what keeps his engine ticking over has become essential.
‘I felt tired immediately after the Belgium game but it’s a strange one because I feel okay going into games,’ he explained. ‘I still feel good and feel fresh and that’s probably a sign of my maturity in terms of my body developing in the right way so that you can handle so many games.
‘I’ve got 10/11 days off before we start pre-season with Celtic, so I won’t lose too much before fitness during that period and I’ll be ready to go again for the new campaign.
‘I’ll take a wee break and then with four or five days to go I’ll do a bit in the gym and get my body ready. I’ve been fairly good at that over the last few years and been ready to go for the qualifiers and it’s a case of making sure it’s the same again.’
McGregor probably didn’t need Tuesday’s exposure to the world’s best international side to be a reminder of just how important any marginal gains can be, but Belgium still managed to hammer home the point anyway. What a sight Roberto Martinez’s side were in full flow.
The power of Vincent Kompany and Romelu Lukaku, the footballing brain of Axel Witsel, the majesty of Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard.
It’s the standard every player surely aspires to. It is precisely why the likes of McGregor are repeatedly willing to put in the hard yards.
‘It was tough on Tuesday,’ he reflected. ‘It was a big task but for the first 45 minutes we were excellent and did everything the manager asked us to do.
‘We conceded the goal right on half-time, so it was disappointing not to go in 0-0, but there is a lot of positivity and things to build on.’