It goes without saying that fitness is crucial in the modern game. As such, Celtic players all receive home training regimes to undertake throughout the close season and indeed Covid 19. However, one component of training caught the eye on social media, as players were asked to time themselves running 5 kilometres.
Greg Taylor emerged as Celtic’s fastest 5K runner, completing the task in little over 16 minutes. However, he wasn’t well praised for his efforts by his teammates. “It wasn’t so much praise than abuse,” Taylor told Celtic TV in an interview after returning to Lennoxtown. “A few of the lads were questioning whether or not I had the GPS belt strapped to the dog! There wasn’t much praise given, truth be told. Kendo maybe gave me a wee bit, but he also questioned again how I was doing it. Not much praise given – I just want my league medal, to be fair, I’ve still not got that.”
Taking the abuse in the humorous nature it was intended, Taylor stressed how good it’s been to return to training at Lennoxtown after long spells of isolation. “It’s been so good, seeing some of the lads, getting back into a good routine and just being back at the park, the pitches are looking immaculate and we’ve got that pre-season buzz.”
Despite keeping fit during lockdown, Taylor said one of the best things about returning to training was being able to play football once more. “I’m enjoying doing the running with the ball and that’s enough for me. I’ll stick the 5K trophy on the mantlepiece and leave it there!”
