Callum McGregor repeated the greatest thing Brendan Rodgers has ever said.
It is just the kind of dazzling show at the pinnacle that the aspirational duo had imagined during their now-famous summer meeting in Spain 17 months ago.At the core of the victory over RB Leipzig, McGregor was simply magnificent. His influence was so great that, as the captain was returning to the Germans’ team bus after the game, visiting coach Marco Rose cut into his post-match trackside interview to personally congratulate him.
As Celtic crushed the Bundesliga’s top players, McGregor’s brilliance was replicated throughout the field. The performance was so good that it was dubbed the best since victories over teams like Barcelona and Juventus under Martin O’Neill and Neil Lennon. It was, without a doubt, Rodgers’ greatest Euro victory as Celtic’s manager.
McGregor expressed the same sentiment when he reflected on his time as a Parkhead player: “I would think so, I can’t remember too many more actually, to be honest.” However, the past two games—particularly this one—have been outstanding, and we want to be that kind of squad.
We want to play good football and be ahead of the game, but you also need to be determined and defend well. In my opinion, even that performance was superior to Atalanta’s since it was more controlled.
“As I mentioned earlier, we’re constantly learning and improving, and at this point, we’re getting more at ease, so it should give us incredible confidence for the remaining games.”
It’s exactly where they wanted the team to be when they talked about Celtic’s predicament in June of last year, when Rodgers was considering returning to take over for Ange Postecoglou. Throughout his second stint, Rodgers has made no secret of the fact that European development has been a major aim.
As the leader of the dressing room, the one who sets the standards for the training ground, and the lieutenant on the field, McGregor has played a pivotal role in those operations. The captain responded, “Well, we’re ambitious people and we want to strive for the best and push this club as much as we can and push the club as far as we can,” when asked about the Spain meeting, which was scheduled for nights like Tuesday.
“And, yes, as you mentioned, that was the kind of conversation; that’s where we want the club to be, and you can go home and feel proud of yourself after a night like this, which makes it all worthwhile.”
With the performance and their position in the standings, Celtic had every reason to be ecstatic. “Yeah, well that’s it,”
McGregor added, adding that it’s what they are all aiming for. We’ve probably talked about the process and our
efforts to keep building. You play well in games against Atletico Madrid, but you fall short.
However, that was the performance of a squad that played with incredible bravery and skill with the ball, and who
appeared at ease and as though they belonged at this level. We then displayed every quality of the Atalanta
performance when we were up against the ball. It was great because we combined the Atalanta and Bratislava
performances in a way and provided a full show.
Five weeks after being thrashed by Borussia in Dortmund, it was evident that Celtic’s new team was picking things
up quickly. As you mentioned in the Dortmund game, McGregor thought, “Well, I think firstly, you are 5-1 down
before you know it and the game has totally gone.”
“At this level, if you’re not on it, you can get done like that. Two penalties, two smashed in the top corner.” Dortmund
defeated Real Madrid a few weeks ago, proving that you can drop five goals in a half. However, I believe that the last
two performances have been exactly what we wanted.
When it comes to managing the game without the ball, avoiding excessive pressure, and attempting to jump at the
wrong times, that is the kind of team we want to be. It’s a far more mature performance in terms of knowing when to
leave and when to stay put, and then being proactive and trying to win it when the ball into your organization.
“And you need to bring even more control with the ball when you play at home, because that gives you a chance in
these games where you can control the tempo if you control the ball.”
All of it was done by Celtic versus Leipzig. They were ravenous and unrelenting without the ball, with the exception
of a brief period following the loss of the first goal. They were able to create opportunities to score three goals and
may have had more thanks to their talent, skill, and cunning.
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