YOU’D have to go a long way to find something that Callum McGregor hasn’t seen before in Scottish football, even given how absurd it can get in this often-strange little part of the world.
So, the talk of a resurgent Rangers nipping at his side’s coattails going into this afternoon’s Old Firm fixture, off the back of a 16-match unbeaten run under new manager Philippe Clement, is old hat to the Celtic skipper.
And, he says, it will have little bearing on the outcome of the game. McGregor has learned through experience that it is the focus on their own performance, and their ability to impose their own game upon their opponents, that will be the deciding factor at Celtic Park this afternoon.
“I have been here many times,” McGregor said.
“At times, teams start well [when they get a new manager] and then drop off. Others start slowly and then pick up.
“I have seen it all but when you come to this game, it is always tight, with one or two points in it. We aren’t in a different position to what we have been in [many times] during my time here.
“We understand it’s a big game and the hype around it. But the best way for us to answer that is to do what we have been. To continue with that consistent message of trying to attack and defend together with intensity.
“I think if we bring that, then we will have a good day. But we have to do it in every game. That’s important.”
McGregor had some home truths for his Celtic teammates following the defeat to Hearts a couple of weeks back, a result that – on the back of a loss to Kilmarnock – allowed Rangers to close the gap on the champions at the top of the table.
The response, with wins and clean sheets against Livingston and Dundee, has been the desired one for the midfielder.
“If anyone has watched our games since then, the structure has been there,” he said.
“The intensity to work and run has been there again too. We have been together.
“I wouldn’t say anything in public that I wouldn’t say to the players in the dressing room, but what happened a couple of weeks ago hurt. It hurt everybody, it hurt us and the supporters.
“Every time we go on the pitch now, we have to show that hurt and show we are determined to do it right.
“Saturday is another chance for us to do that and make a statement.”
As well as bringing the fire though, McGregor knows the value of having ice in the veins in these encounters. The importance of maintaining a level of calm has, in fact, led to holing himself away in his house for much of the week to avoid understandably excitable supporters.
“I think probably just over the years, you deal with that a little bit better," he said.
"It’s just taking yourself away from everything that is outside to you.
“So, you come to work, you do your stuff in here, you prepare, you speak to the boys and you speak to the manager.
“But then when you leave here, you just go home because generally everyone you bump into wants to talk about the game, so the best way to avoid that is to stay out of the way, really.
“It’s not because you don’t want to speak about it, it’s just because you want to get yourself into a place where you are calm and focused.
“Everyone knows how these games are, so it is our job to stay calm so that we can see the pictures clearly and that we can execute what we are trying to do come the actual game.”
There will likely be little in the way of calmness when that first whistle blows, and McGregor says it will be vital to make a fast, positive start to the game, particularly when there are only Celtic fans in the stadium.
“The game is set-up in terms of everything being in our favour,” he said.
“The crowd is there, but in order to get them with you and stay with you, then you have to give them something to shout about it.
“So, it is our performance, our intensity that we bring to the game is what will get them off their seat and get them involved them in the game.
“We understand that. We know the crowd will be up for it anyway because of who we are playing, but our performance and intensity relates to that.
“That’s what keeps them involved in the game and makes it a really powerful situation for us. That’s what our focus is.
“We want to take the game to Rangers and get our crowd involved and play a fast-tempo game.”
