Scotland boss praises ‘overlooked’ Celtic captain Callum McGregor

Scotland manager Steve Clarke has picked out Callum McGregor as an underrated gem in his current side. McGregor has been brilliant for club and country for some time now but the emergence of Billy Gilmour and the goalscoring exploits of John McGinn often results in McGregor being overlooked for praise.

McGregor, who scored the only goal for the Scots at the Euros, has been instrumental in bringing Clarke’s side into the World Cup Play-Offs, playing both in deeper defensive roles and in attacking positions if need be. Clarke told Sky Sports that he thinks that the brilliant Celtic skipper is overlooked, despite quality performances.

“I think in midfield, you look at Callum McGregor.

“He sometimes maybe gets overlooked because Billy gets the headlines, but Callum McGregor’s had a really good year with the international team. He was a standout, him and Ryan Jack, against Serbia.

“Callum has continued on a really good level for the national team. Obviously now he’s captain of Celtic and he’s got that responsibility and the more captains you’ve got on the pitch the better.”

19th December 2021; Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland; Scottish League Cup final, Hibernian versus Celtic: Callum McGregor of Celtic with the trophy

McGregor has been named in 24 of Clarke’s Starting XIs since the Ayrshire-born manager took over from Alex McLeish in 2019. Clarke has realised the importance of McGregor to the success of his current project, affording McGinn the ability to get forward while complimenting his teammates around him.

Scotland will play Ukraine at Hampden in March with the view of a Final against Wales later that month on the line for a place in the 2022 World Cup.

About Author

Born just as Celtic were stopping the Ten, Lubo98 follows Celtic home and away and helps run his local Celtic Supporters Club. He goes to all the games and is a Law Graduate. Has a particular fondness for Tom Rogic among the current Celts and both Lubo and Henrik form his earliest Celtic memories.

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