Q: Have you made plans for the international break? Is that quite a weird thing that you’re going to have a few days off so that you can do what you want?
Callum McGregor: “I’ve not made any plans yet – we’ve got two games before then that need our full attention. It will be slightly different of course but I’ll probably get a bit of time off. For the time being, I’m fully focused on the game at the weekend. I’ll continue on that route at the minute and then decide after that.”
Q: When you were having a conversation with Steve Clarke about it, did he try and persuade you to stay on or was it a case of respecting your decision? Was there a few talks?
Callum McGregor: “No, we had the one chat and he was respectful to what I was saying to him on the phone. We’re both experienced people and I try to not be too high-maintenance as a player so I think when I gave him my thoughts then he was happy to respect that. I’ve got an enormous amount of respect for Steve and what he’s done for the national team and what he’s done for the national team as well.”
Q: Is it getting harder for players with the number of qualifiers to keep going internationally to the stage you’ve got to?
Callum McGregor: “I think football is just like that. Even the guys that don’t have internationals, they’re still getting very minimal time off and the Champions League has been extended, as well as the UEFA competitions being extended. It’s getting busier and busier but it’s part and parcel of football really.”
Q: The manager says you never really switch off when you get a day off. Is it going to be a different mindset when you go into that week off?
Callum McGregor: “Probably not, he’s probably spot on, to be honest. I’ll probably be thinking of the first game back straight away! It’s the way I’m wired, and I’ll try and enjoy it by taking a few days off and seeing what I get up to. We’re only at the start of the season so there’s a lot of work to be done and a lot of thought process into where we want to get to. That’ll be in the forefront of my mind as well.”
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We’ll make our mark all right – as one of the worst teams in the competition! Celtic are nowhere near the quality they must be to compete at that level, especially now that the greedy Board has sold our prize asset.
This window is an utter disgrace. No disrespect to Calmac but he knows, the manager knows, we know and the board certainly know, we have no chance of making an impact without the “quality” that’s been required since Ang left. This board aren’t fit for purpose. They also know through the home ticket scheme they have most of the £200 a head money already. They have zero ambition and we can look forward to being European also rams