Callum McGregor’s Mentality Message to Incoming Players

As Celtic’s preseason tour in the United States draws to a close with a match against Chelsea on Saturday, club captain Callum McGregor took a moment to reflect on the previous season’s rollercoaster journey which ended with a league and cup double.

Speaking to RecordSport, McGregor reminisced about the celebratory scenes that followed last season’s title clinch.

Finishing eight points clear made it look easy work on paper, but for much of the last part of the season, Rangers were breathing down Celtic’s necks and even found themselves leading the race at one point.

But in the end, it was the experience and winner’s mentality that shone through, and any player coming in will need to have the same mindset.

“You look at the scenes at the end of last season. That’s what this club does to you – you celebrate every trophy like it’s the first. Success is so ingrained in the staff, the coaches, the players and the supporters.

“When things go a bit wayward, you think this might get taken away from us – it just sharpens everyone up. The last six weeks of the season were a prime example of that. We have to bank that experience, of course. But it’s important to anyone coming in to understand it right away.

“We were talking about it the other day. We actually started the season really well. I don’t think we lost a Game for about 10 or 11 Games in the league.

“We had a spell in the middle when it wasn’t so great, we lost the two Games in December and everyone started to hone in on that. But we ended up with 90-odd points and when you look back at the season as a whole, it was really successful.”

Despite not always displaying the best performances, Celtic managed to secure crucial results, particularly in tough away matches, showcasing their character.

Albeit it’s just pre-season, but the squad look like they’re going to hit the next level under Brendan Rodgers. They look sharp and quick in pre-season, hopefully, this can continue into the comPetitive season, which starts in just over a week’s time.