Callum McGregor shouldn’t require surgery on his troublesome Achilles injury, but Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers admits he will have to manage his captain’s recovery carefully to avoid a longer-term layoff.
McGregor was taken off at half time in the recent 7-1 thumping of Dundee, and he missed the weekend defeat to Hearts as he struggled to shake off the niggling problem, which has been bothering him for several seasons now.
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The 30-year-old will also miss tomorrow’s Scottish Cup tie against Livingston, and although Rodgers hopes to have him back in his usual midfield berth following the forthcoming international break, he is reluctant to rush him into action again before he is fully fit.
“It’s his Achilles connecting with his calf,” Rodgers said.
“He played on with it a little bit in the Motherwell game and then played with it in the Dundee game.
“In the first half, he felt it and we wanted to take him off to protect him. It’s something we want to be sure of because the last thing you want is for the Achilles to go. Because if it does, you are out for a long time.
“So we have to monitor it really and then see where he’s at after the international break.
“I don’t believe there is the prospect surgery will be required. Normally when they go for these scans, you will see if there is a tear but there’s nothing like that at all. So, we just have to look at resting it.
“He can do some work, but we don’t want to fire it up any more than it needs to be.
“He is a huge miss for the team by not playing. But I always say that’s when others have got to show their personality.
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“He has been a key part of this team for a long time. That influence has only grown and grown and grown.
“So, of course, when you don’t have that level of experience and genuine quality, then of course it’s a miss.
“It’s an opportunity for someone else to grow and that’s what we can hopefully see while he is out.”
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