AT the age of just 23, you could be forgiven for thinking Callum McGregor is perhaps a bit on the young side to be looking forward to a clean slate.
Nevertheless, the midfielder who has suffered a conflicting two years since first breaking into the Celtic squad is a man who is out to make a statement that all his troubles are now very much behind him.
Following his return from Notts County on loan, the Lennoxtown youth academy graduate made an instant name for himself by not only scoring on his debut away to KR Reykjavik and in the next two rounds of the Champions League qualifiers, but by also going on to become a major part of Ronny Deila’s team that cantered to the last two Premiership titles.
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But McGregor’s story is not without its plot twist. With the word seemingly at his feet, the midfielder’s world was thrown into a spin back in February when he was caught almost four times the legal alcohol limit. It was a moment that could have been the catalyst of a downward spiral, instead McGregor was intent to learn from his mistakes and seize the second chance given to him by his club.
Now under the tutelage of Brendan Rodgers, McGregor – and indeed his team-mates – know they daren’t put a foot wrong if they want to stay in the new gaffer's good books.
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“Any manager that comes in they are on their best behaviour,” he said. “People want to impress. He has brought a fresh impetus to the squad.”
“Off-the-field problems like that should never happen but you learn from that and make sure it doesn’t happen again. For me, whether it was Ronny or the new manager, it remains exactly the same.
“I want to make sure it never happens again and I want to put things behind me and focus on the season ahead, my football and exciting times for the club.
“Every player is the same, they want to play every week. I have been in and out over the last two seasons but I want to play. I think I suit the way the manager want to play and I want to really cement my place in his team.”
In his first two games under Rodgers, McGregor certainly hasn’t done himself any harm at all. Featuring in the second half of the 1-1 draw against Celje on Thursday, the bright talent produced a display beyond his years on Sunday away to Sturm Graz playing in a more unusual holding midfielder role.
For a player used to either being on the wing or slaloming through the middle towards goal, it is a change of perspective that he refuses to shy away from.
“When a new manager comes through the door it gives everybody a lift,” explained McGregor. “We are all trying to do well and to impress to show we should be in the team. People say it has gone up a level but it has probably gone up another level beyond that again with people trying to impress.
“It can only be good because our sessions have been good, we are getting fit and working hard.
“It has been a big squad for a while. You just need to try and impress and if you get the shirt you have to keep it by doing well and working hard in training every day. We just need to go out and show who is the best for every position.”
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