Celtic will head to Tynecastle tomorrow night without captain Callum McGregor after picking up a horrendous head injury following a challenge with Alloa’s Adam King in Saturday’s 2-1 Scottish Cup win over Alloa Athletic, however Daily Record are reporting that McGregor’s facial injury may not keep him out for as long as first expected.
‘Celtic are hopeful Callum McGregor’s facial injury may not be as bad as first feared,’ with the paper claiming that “the Parkhead skipper believes the head knock he picked up during Saturday’s 2-1 Scottish Cup win over Alloa is less serious than boss Ange Postecoglou initially suspected immediately after the fourth-round clash. And the Celtic manager dropped a cryptic hint his skipper may not be sidelined for up to two months after all.
McGregor suffered concussion after the collision with Adam King, meaning the Scotland star is unlikely to make tomorrow’s trip to face Hearts or Saturday’s visit from Dundee United. And he will still be regarded as a major doubt for next week’s Old Firm (sic) derby. But Celtic’s medical team are optimistic McGregor will be back in action quicker than expected.’
Whether the Record have any particular source within Celtic’s medical team or not, the report is further bolstered by Ange Postecoglou’s exclusive interview with Celtic TV yesterday evening where he also sounded positive to the possibility of a quicker than expected return to action for the Celtic skipper.
“I think he’s better today. He wasn’t in great shape straight after the game. There was obviously the injury and he had a slight concussion as well so he wasn’t in a great shape. But I exchanged messages with him yesterday and he feels a bit better which is great. Hopefully his recovery doesn’t take too long.
“You always fear the worst at the time. You could see he was trying to stay up because he’s as brave as they come. So for him to come off I knew it was something significant.”
For Callum McGregor this one looks like a case of wait and see, but the prognosis certainly sounds more positive than yesterday’s reports.
There is no chance whatsoever that Celtic’s captain and most influential performer will be back for Tynecastle tomorrow night or indeed for the weekend fixture with Dundee United at Celtic Park, however with an outside chance of a return for the Glasgow Derby it seems Callum McGregor may be on the road to recovery earlier than many of us hoped possible.
Niall J
📺 @CelticTV Exclusive: Ange Postecoglou 💬 “Callum is better today. He wasn’t in great shape after the game but I’ve exchanged messages with him and he feels a bit better, which is great.”#cinchPrem | #CelticFC🍀| #HEACEL
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) January 25, 2022
