Celtic well equipped for Ibrox challenge says Callum McGregor

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The Celtic Star

·2 January 2025

Celtic well equipped for Ibrox challenge says Callum McGregor

Callum McGregor reckons Celtic need to ‘control the game more’ this afternoon at Ibrox in order to avoid a repeat performance to the one at Hampden just over a fortnight ago…

Callum McGregor applauds the fans at the end of the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and St. Johnstone at Celtic Park on December 29, 2024. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

The third Glasgow Derby clash is upon us with Celtic breezing past theRangers at Paradise in September before narrowly defeating Philippe Clement’s side in dramatic fashion in the Premier Sports League Cup final last month, the Hoops will be aiming for a similar outcome to the first two.

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Craftily conceded

Brendan Rodgers craftily conceded in his media conference on Friday that theRangers were the better side in the Premier Sports League Cup final despite Celtic claiming a record-breaking 119th trophy in the club’s history. Now, skipper Callum McGregor has laid down a marker to his teammates that Celtic need to cut out the chaos which we saw at the national stadium in order to secure three points at Ibrox.

Callum McGregor with the Premier Sports Cup after Celtic’s victory over theRangers on 15 December 2024 at Hampden Park. Photo Kenny Ramsay

McGregor said: “It’s fair to say we weren’t at our best in that game, especially in the first half. In the second half we scored three goals and could have probably had more. So, we didn’t play well for 45 minutes and then as the game went on, we started to get control of the game.

A bit of a chaotic game

“It was a bit of a chaotic game where we scored two and then we conceded straight after it, which doesn’t help things. But in cup finals everyone understands that that can happen. There’s so much emotion around the game and it became a bit chaotic.

“From our point of view, we want to stop the chaos and try to control the game a bit more. If we take the chaos out of the game, then it starts to look a bit more like what we want it to.”

Callum McGregor with the Premier Sports Cup after Celtic’s victory over theRangers on 15 December 2024 at Hampden Park. Photo Kenny Ramsay

A sixth victory at Ibrox across his two spells as Celtic manager for Brendan Rodgers would see the Hoops extend their lead at the top of the table to 17 points after just 19 league matches.

Philippe Clement has never won against Celtic

On the other hand, despite having six attempts at it, Philippe Clement has yet to defeat the three-in-a-row Scottish champions since arriving in Glasgow 15 months ago. The under pressure Belgian boss was fizzing that his side weren’t awarded a penalty at the national stadium two weeks ago when Vaclav Cerny was pulled down in the box by Liam Scales.

Blocking out the post-mortem and meltdown after the game, McGregor explained that he and his teammates delivered on the big stage once again: “We get that and understand there’s a lot of chat after these games — what could have been or what might have been.

“But the reality is we went on and delivered and got the trophy. So, I think our players deserve a lot of credit for that as well. It is what it is. I think us as players understand how difficult the game was and internally, we stood up to the challenge and we got the job done,” the Celtic skipper said.

Celtic’s strength of character

“Generally, when we go in front in games we can see the game out. Obviously, (the)Rangers were pushing in the game as well and they felt good about the game. Us maybe not so much. We probably tried to protect it after we got the third goal which is unlike us as well.

“So, the emotion of cup finals is difficult to deal with and when it becomes a wee bit like that – they score, we score, they score, we score – then it can be difficult to manage the game. But I think the ultimate strength of our character was when we needed to find something we did in the penalty shootout.”

Callum McGregor celebrates after the Premier Sports Cup Final victory over theRangers at Hampden on 15 December 2024. Photo AJ for The Celtic Star

McGregor added: “We’ve been there [Ibrox] many times, including this group of players, and understood what it takes to get success. So, everybody’s well equipped for it and it’s now about us. When we step over the line can we deliver that.”

Conor Spence

Celtic in the Thirties by Celtic Historian Matt Corr is published in two volumes by Celtic Star Books. ORDER NOW WHILE STOCKS LAST!