McGREGOR’S BARCA AMBITION

CALLUM McGREGOR admitted he is excited at the prospect of facing world giants Barcelona in the International Champions Cup in Dublin tonight.

But Celtic’s attacking midfielder revealed he would love to meet the swashbuckling Spaniards in the REAL thing – the Champions League group stages later in the season.

McGregor said: “The thought of playing against the likes of Messi and Suarez has got to excite you. You see these guys playing in the biggest matches in the Champions League, El Clasicos.

“You watch them on the TV and now you are going to play them, test yourself against the best in the world.

“It shows you where you are at. This’ll be a good test for our fitness and the way we want to play. Hopefully, it’ll be a sign of things to come and we can just keep building. We want to play them in the real thing and that’s what we are striving for.

“I would hope we could face them in the group stages of the Champions League in a few months’ time, but we’ll have to wait and see.”

McGregor has started the last two competitive games under the watchful eye of new boss Brendan Rodgers. The 23-year-old Glaswegian said: “It’s still early and every game for me is about doing something which keeps me in the side, keeps me going forward.

“We know there is a big squad and the gaffer has said that everyone is playing for their place.

“Everybody has that competitive edge, anyway, but having that incentive can only drive the standards up in training and in games.

“I’ve had a couple of small chats with the manager and everything has been positive in terms of how he wants us to play and the way he sees me playing.

“It’s positive and you just try to keep it going. You just focus and try to show as much as you can, which, hopefully, will keep you in the plans.”

Once Upon a Time in the Kingdom of Govania is written by CQN’er MEA CULPA and is beautifully illustrated by the wonderfully talented CARTUJA.

Set in Medieval times it is a story of greed, corruption, cheating and skullduggery.

Some of the main characters may well ring a bell or two. There’s David the Lamb Giver and his financial assistant Baxendale de Porno.

Queen Beth sends Sir Hector of Taxem to Govania not long after David the Lamb Giver’s trusted ally Banquo Scotus in the terrible batte of Krunching Kredit. 

On the story goes as Sir Googly of Ayes is Hailed as the new knight of the realm. 

Sir Charles de Verre, the terrible Ogre, Mash the Scrotum Gripper and many more sort of familiar characters all enter the story of the fantastic fall of Govania and the emergence of Sevconia at Castle Ibroke. 

Once Upon a Time in the Kingdom Of Govania is an Escaped Goat Production for Celtic Quick News and Internet Bampots and is available exclusively from  www.cqnbookstore.com with a limited number copies remaining. 

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