At the end of Saturday’s defeat against Hearts, Celtic captain Callum McGregor took his teammates into the middle and gave them a team talk. Those of us that had made it to Full-Time didn’t hang about to see this show of leadership but fortunately, an account on Twitter/X shared the clip.
I found it interesting that Celtic Captain Callum McGregor stepped up to rally the troops after today’s 0-2 defeat against Hearts – whilst Brendan Rodgers appeared to slink away in the background.
Not the man-management approach you’d expect after such a crushing loss. pic.twitter.com/1VngWDTE1d
— The Fast Lovin’ Sin-Soaked Heathen (@fast_sin) December 16, 2023
The club legend, who came through the Academy, is clearly reiterating that the result was unacceptable and that he requires more from his teammates. That showed real leadership from the Scotland Internationalist. He could have darted straight up the tunnel but rather than doing that, he waited it out, braved the boos from the fans and (hopefully) gave his teammates something to think about.
There are a number of players in the squad, some that were involved and some that weren’t involved on Saturday, that will likely be moved on in January to clear some space for incomings. The club have a bloated first team that is crammed with projects and lacking in quality. The club’s Chief Executive, Michael Nicholson, must now show some of the leadership that CalMac exhibited as the Scottish Champions tool up to defend the title.
Heading into the summer, Michael Nicholson was probably wondering what all the fuss was about. The solicitor, who had worked his way in-house at the club from private practice, was facing a Scottish Cup Final against Inverness CT and had a brilliant manager, who had assembled an excellent squad.
In early June, a Treble had been secured but Ange Postecoglou was away and the club were scrambling for a replacement. Brendan Rodgers came back and as he did, he spoke about quality and playing football with pace and aggression. The Irishman said that he wanted to make a mark in Europe while continuing to excel in the ‘bread and butter’ of domestic football.
Shortly after this announcement, Aaron Mooy retired with the Australian having made 42 appearances, scoring 7 goals and assisting 11 times. This was followed by the surprise departure of Jota, who left for Al-Ittihad for £25m. The 24-year-old had 15 goals and 12 assists in his 43 appearances. Next, Carl Starfelt left for £4m to Celta Vigo – another key player under Ange that had moved onto pastures new. That was three key first team players that were not going to be involved under Brendan moving forward.
The club’s signings in the summer left a lot to be desired. Only Luis Palma started from the crop of new arrivals and he was subbed off for Alexandro Bernabei to try his hand at left wing. Kwon, Yang, Marco Tilio, Odin Thiago Holm, Maik Nawrocki, Gustaf Lagerbielke, Paolo Bernardo and Nat Phillips arrived but none would be able to replicate the quality that had been lost in the window.
Injuries at different intervals to Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate and Liel Abada further limited the squad by taking goal contributions out. This could explain in part Kyogo’s misfiring this year as he isn’t getting the same, regular service. The issue with depth needs to be resolved and that can only be achieved by bringing quality in during the transfer window.
Another way in which Nicholson can calm tensions is getting the GB/Bhoys back into games. The stadium has suffered as a result of their ban and, whilst the club will say that it was deserved, there appears to be a resolution in the offing. It is important that the groups are back in the ground for the game on 30 December.
It is shaping up to be a vital few weeks for Celtic in the hunt for a third successive title. The manager says that he needs more players but if he doesn’t, we risk that he walks away. The league is there to be won and both the manager and the team require support – not only from fans but from the board.
