CELTS HAVE A POINT TO PROVE

McGregor is determined to make up for Ibrox low

IT was only by a margin as wide as his shoulder blade that Callum McGregor was ruled offside and denied a late equaliser after angling a low shot under Allan McGregor late in the last Old Firm derby. Not that the Celtic midfielder sees any reason to draw positives from a match in which Brendan Rodgers’ side were out-fought and out-played by a Rangers team fired up and determined to secure a result after two years of being incessantly battered in the fixture.

Shunted out to left-back for the day, it was entirely in keeping with McGregor’s exemplary season that he still emerged as Celtic’s best outfield player at Ibrox. Goalkeeper Craig Gordon aside, he alone impressed in a timid post-Christmas performance that was to prove Rodgers’ muted sign-off from the fixture.

It falls to Neil Lennon to rouse the players for today’s instalment at Celtic Park but McGregor will draw all the motivation he needs from the memory of December 29.

‘I think we have something to prove after that game,’ he admits. ‘When you are a professional and you get beat in your biggest derby it hurts.

‘It’s probably been hurting everyone since that day. We have been quite lucky in that we’ve had quite a few wins over them over the last few years but that one defeat stays in your head.

‘You forget about the rest and you deal with that one. It’s something we will be looking to put right.’

The quality of McGregor’s midfield play this season made it a major surprise when Rodgers selected him at full-back ahead of Emilio Izaguirre and Jonny Hayes.

Kieran Tierney has since returned from a pelvic injury to reclaim his natural berth in the team and, despite withdrawing from the Scotland squad ahead of the Euro 2020 qualifier in Kazakhstan, should be fit and available for today’s game.

McGregor’s return to his natural midfield position won’t be the only improvement to a creaking line-up that buckled at Ibrox.

A striker crisis meant teenage winger Mikey Johnston started up front in that December clash but record signing Odsonne Edouard now has Oliver Burke and Timothy Weah vying for a spot behind him.

With McGregor, Dedryck Boyata, Filip Benkovic, Tom Rogic and Olivier Ntcham also in contention after missing recent games, Celtic are looking strong.

A lengthy injury list gave Lennon a fire-fighting start to his second spell in charge, but late Edouard winners against Hearts and Dundee, coupled with a Scottish Cup victory at Hibs, have kept Celtic on track for another domestic treble.

With options at hand today, McGregor hopes more of Lennon’s managerial flair will start to manifest itself in the team.

‘Since the manager has come in, we have scored a few late goals and that just shows how mentally strong we are as a group,’ continued McGregor. ‘We have really pushed to the final whistle to get those

wins and the goal up at Dundee was a massive moment.

‘He has been excellent but I think slightly different, too. Brendan was really tactical but the gaffer has already had a successful time as Celtic manager and has all that experience to bring to this group of players.

‘It’s pretty much been about picking up where we left off in that last stint. We have started well, started positively. He (Lennon) has always been a brilliant motivator, he really gets you going to get over the line.

‘He lives for these games, too. As footballers you want to play in the biggest games so we will be ready for it.

‘I have spoken to KT and, hopefully, he will be okay and that will allow me to play centrally, where I can affect the game.’

McGregor missed the first three matches of Lennon’s reign with a calf strain but returned for that narrow victory at Dens Park before flying out on international duty where he captained Scotland to a 3-0 defeat in Kazakhstan.

After almost three years of unbroken domestic success, the experience of playing a central role in what was quickly dubbed Scotland’s worst ever international result came as a shock to the system.

A composed and diligent ball player, McGregor is one of the outstanding candidates for Scotland’s various player of the year awards yet, amid a shambolic team performance, he could barely get to grips with the game in the Astana Arena.

A 2-0 win in San Marino a few nights later barely began to make amends but the 25-year-old intends to use the whole sobering experience as a tool towards self-improvement.

‘A lot of what has happened over the last two years has been very positive,’ he muses. ‘I’ve had some real highs but it always comes back round.

‘It tests you mentally and you have to find out if you can deal with it. You are always going to get tough weeks in football but can you bounce back? That was the question for the boys in San Marino.

‘Personally, I’d had a tough couple of weeks just trying to get fit. To then go straight into three games in a week was hard but that’s what we need — guys who are willing to run through a brick wall.

‘The good thing about San Marino was that it came straight away. If you have a period of time to reflect, it’s there and in the back of your mind, sometimes for months.

‘So it’s good that we could come out with Scotland, get a positive reaction, three

points and then talk about it from there.’

Although he was running on fumes by the time Alex McLeish decided to replace him with Scott McTominay in San Marino’s Serravalle Stadium, McGregor feels better for the game time.

‘I probably shouldn’t have played the 90 minutes against Dundee,’ he says. ‘We had talked about getting 20 or 30 minutes but all of a sudden I was starting and then playing the full game.

‘That was good for me, mentally, to know the injury was away. I spoke to the manager about coming away, getting some game time into the legs again and coming off after 55 in San Marino gave me a breather.’

Even without accounting for the injury, McGregor was due rest. By the time he played his last match for Rodgers in Valencia, he had featured in 54 games this season, more than any other player on the planet.

‘All the games probably contributed to picking up that the calf strain,’ he admitted. ‘I’d played 90 minutes 51 times up to that point, so it was a lot.

‘I was getting close to that 100 games in a row, so I will need to start again!

‘I’ve come through the international break and that’s been good for me. I know I have it in the tank to keep going.’