CALLUM McGREGOR agrees there is a feelgood factor at Celtic at the moment as they settle into a vitally important campaign.
As ever, it’s all about silverware and triumphs for the champions who have the opportunity to get their hands on the first trophy of the season when they face Phillipe Clement’s Ibrox side in the Premiers Sports League Cup Final at Hampden a week on Sunday.
The powerhouse Parkhead outfit moved seven points ahead of nearest challengers Aberdeen with their 1-0 midweek success at storm-lashed Pittodrie as Reo Hatate claimed the winner with his fourth goal of the crusade.
Brendan Rodgers’ men also have a game in hand over the Dons as they prepare for the home encounter against Hibs tomorrow in their quest for a fourth successive title, their thirteenth flag in 14 years and their 55th crown in their history.
CAPTAIN’S ROLE…Callum McGregor enjoys the success over Aberdeen at Pittodrie.
So the east end of Glasgow is certainly smiles better at the moment, but skipper supreme McGregor insists there will be no complacency as they drive towards their targets at home in Europe, with the next Champions League outing due in Croatia against Dinamo Zagreb on Tuesday.
Asked about the possibility of settling for a point in the midst of monsoon conditions in the north east this week, Rodgers’ influential onfield leader answered: “No, I don’t think that’s in our DNA at Celtic.
“At this club, you have to win every game.
“The way we played, if you’d come away with a draw and never got the goal, performance-wise you’d have been reasonably happy. But straight away, you’d have then been thinking ‘dropped points’ and everyone feels differently about the game.
“It showed a really good mentality that even on a difficult night, we can produce that level of quality to get us the win. Obviously, everyone feels great about themselves and everything just keeps rolling on with that momentum.”
McGregor notched his sixth goal of the term in last weekend’s 5-0 success over Ross County and, speaking to the Daily Record, continued: “Of course, it’s satisfying.
“It just makes it more difficult for the opposition to try to pinpoint someone to mark. In the nature of our game model, the midfielders are asked to get in the box and there’s a real structure and a real pattern of how we’re going to get goals.
UP IN ARMS…Callum McGregor hails Reo Hatate’s winner against the Dons.
“It’s really good to see the midfielders chipping in and it just takes the pressure off the front line, as well.
“Everyone understands it’s a team game with everybody playing their part.
“We’re sustaining the ball more and in the final third, we’re making good decisions.
“Everyone’s chipping in and helping out and, then again, the back boys, they got the reward against Aberdeen. We had a really strong performance so, as a group of players, we’re happy.
“I’ll try and pass that on to the forward players. As long as we’re winning and everything’s going well, then I’m happy.”
McGregor also praised the strength in depth of the playing resources and added: “That’s the level of the squad now. It’s so strong.
“We made changes at the weekend against Ross County and the guys came in and did brilliantly. We made another few changes for Aberdeen and it was the same thing.
“Everybody’s playing their part. The boys feel good about themselves. The structure of the team looks good.
“We’re happy and we just continue to work as hard as we can to keep on this momentum.”
