If Callum McGregor had a pound for every time he has had to utter words to the effect of winning being all that really matters, Celtic would have enough in the bank to build a Champions League winning squad.
That’s because much of the time in Scotland, and particularly within the context of the Glasgow rivalry, it is true. And perhaps in no other season – with the Scottish Cup final at the weekend being the perfect example – have a Celtic side so neatly illustrated the point.
Sure, Brendan Rodgers’ side have played well at times. The recent demolition of Kilmarnock to seal the Premiership title and the 7-1 hammering of Dundee spring immediately to mind. But for much of the campaign it was a real grind as injuries hampered the first season of the Rodgers transition.
Regardless, they ended it as league champions and tucked the Scottish Cup safely into the cabinet too, a triumph of mental will as much as it was one of footballing skill, perhaps, but a triumph nonetheless.
That is the bottom line, of course, but for the Celtic captain, it is not enough. As a player who has built a career out of refusing to rest on his laurels, he already has one eye trained on next season and the development that has still to come from this side.
He feels a sense of accomplishment in helping to get Celtic over the line by hook or by crook this term, then, but he wants to do it with a bit of swagger and style next time around.
“I think for the group it will be a positive experience because it has ended well for us,” McGregor said.
“The [new] players have come in, seen the size of the club and what the demands are.
“You are still winning, but not in brilliant style, so there is a little bit of noise. You have to understand that when you are playing at this club you have got to win, and you have got to win well.
“I think we have got better as the season has gone on, so the guys who are here, it will be important for them moving forward.
“They have come through a rough experience a little bit, we have finished with two trophies and then next season we have to press the reset button and go again because we can’t rest on what we have done this season.
“We have to come back in with a strong mentality, working as hard as we possibly can and then see if we can grow this group and build this squad into a really strong squad.”
With the solid foundations they showed at Hampden in place though – their grit, resilience and physicality – McGregor is confident they can add the extras next term.
“It was tight, edgy, against your rivals for 90 minutes,” he said.
“But the big man (Adam Idah) sticks one in the back of the net, so brilliant. You have got to show everything that you need to win finals.
“The strength of character in this group and resilience that this group has shown, I am delighted that we have peaked at the right time, because you need to when you come to April, May. You have to peak, and you have to be ready.
“Physically, I thought we were brilliant. That was another 100-minute game, and the boys were still going strong. We had four or five coming off. So, we are in a good place physically. It was brilliant to get over the line and finish with a double.
“We have certainly got better as the season has gone on. We have got key players back in who have made a big difference to the way that we play.”
McGregor is also conscious though that Celtic can’t become so focused on being easy on the eye that they become easy to play against.
“When it comes to cup finals, you have got to turn up on the day, you have got to do enough to get yourselves over the line,” he said.
“It was probably not a brilliant spectacle football wise, the quality probably wasn’t in the game, but you have got to win. That’s the remit.
“There is no point standing here having played well and lost. At this club you have got to win.
“Obviously, I would rather we had played well, but you can’t be greedy, you have just got to win.”
Meanwhile, McGregor is temporarily shifting his focus to matters on the international stage, with the Celtic captain raring to go and play his part for Steve Clarke’s Scotland side at the European Championships in Germany.
“In the back of your head you know it’s coming, but all of our focus was the game on Saturday,” he said.
“Now that that’s done, [I’ll get a] couple of days off and then I will shift my focus to what will be a brilliant summer, I am sure.
“There is huge excitement around the country and once we get there we want to give as good an account as we can.
“I feel good now. That little period out will maybe do me the world of good once I get to the Scotland squad.
“Again, I will just give my absolute maximum and see where that takes me. I want to try and help the boys as much as I can.
Celtic captain Callum McGregor has paid a fulsome tribute to ‘giant’ Joe Hart on his retirement from professional football, saying that his legacy will live on at the club for years to come.
Hart brought the curtain down on his career as he helped Celtic to the 1-0 win over Rangers on Saturday that secured the Scottish Cup and a double for Brendan Rodgers’ men, a fitting way for the 37-year-old to bow out of the game.
McGregor will miss the support Hart gave him in a leadership role within the Celtic dressing room next term, but he is certain that the impact and influence he had on his teammates – particularly the younger ones – will continue to benefit Celtic for a long time to come.
“When you play with top, experienced players you have to learn from him,” McGregor said.
“That is why they are there, they are there so you can ask questions and watch what they do and how they prepare themselves.
“He is 37, he has seen a lot in football, he has been at the top level, he has gone through difficult moments in his career as well.
“He is somebody that the players should look at and really learn from because once you come across these top players you have got to get every bit of information out of them that you can.
“You couldn’t write a better script – finishing with a double, beating Rangers at Hampden with a last-minute goal and a clean sheet for him. It is a brilliant way to finish. He can go an enjoy his retirement.
“I am sure you will see him popping up somewhere. He deserves every plaudit and every bit of credit that he is going to get because he has been a giant since he walked through the door, someone who is hugely experienced and respected at the club and in football.
“He has been a huge part of why we have been successful over the last three years.”
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