It’s time we had an uncomfortable but necessary conversation about Callum McGregor. The captain has been an unbelievable servant to the football club over the years and still has lots to offer moving forward. However we cannot repeat the mistake of allowing loyalty to dictate team selection on a regular basis.
That’s exactly what happened during the disastrous covid season where Celtic relentlessly played a failing Scott Brown in the hope that he would see us through to the coveted 10 in a row. Our eyes didn’t deceive us then and they aren’t deceiving us now. Callum’s ability to get around the pitch is on the decline. Celtic must now acknowledge that fact and manage his game time better moving forward. They must find a way to maximise his leadership qualities and ensure he still affects the squad even when he’s not playing.
Callum’s commitment and contribution to Celtic cannot be questioned. However now is the right time to separate what his value was to the team from what he is realistically going to offer us going forward. The Rangers games and European ties against LASK and Ferencvaros told us that he no longer has the legs to sit and dictate play in the big games. If the club want him to continue playing in that sitting role then they need to ensure they bring in players around him with physicality and running power.
Celtic’s continued failing in the transfer window leave us without a natural replacement for Callum meaning he’ll probably continue to play every minute moving forward. Hopefully the club are now learning from previous mistakes and plan to bring in a quality CDM as soon as the January window opens. We need real competition for game time throughout the squad and that now includes the captain. A well run club plans years in advance and is prepared for then eventuality when it comes. We should have had John McGinn in the door in advance of Scott Brown needing replaced and we should have had a Lennon Miller type through the door ready to support McGregor. Currently our options are a 33 year old Callum McGregor or a 33 year old Oxlade-Chamberlain. It’s just not good planning.
At this late stage in his career we need to start managing Callum’s workload better. Why can’t he start some games in the league then come off the bench in others? McGregor has played a ridiculous amount of football in his career, more than most in world football. We must take that into consideration and alter his game time accordingly if we want to get the most out of him moving forward. As a club, we ignored the issues around Scott Brown’s decline and it cost us. We cannot do the same with McGregor. He won’t want to miss any game time but thats where strong management and leadership comes in. For the good of Celtic and for the good of McGregor we need to have a plan on how to manage his game time. Otherwise, history will repeat itself.
He’s been an unbelievable player for Celtic and will hopefully contribute towards more success until his current contract ends. However that should likely be in a diminishing role in terms of game time moving forward. Reducing his workload will hopefully help us get the most out of the captain over the next couple of seasons until the end of his deal. If we ignore the elephant in the room and do nothing then it’s likely to cost us again. No one wants history to repeat itself in this instance.
All views expressed on Celtic DNA are personal opinions and are for commentary and discussion purposes only
