Midfielder Callum McGregor reckons Celtic’s ability to stay calm will be the trait that allows the team to eventually secure the league title over the next couple of fixtures, as reported by The Scottish Sun.
The Hoops are stumbling towards to an eighth title in a row, drawing our last two league matches against Livingston and Hibernian 0-0.
The dour stalemates haven’t been too damaging to our trophy bid, but a failure to beat Kilmarnock this weekend would probably raise some eyebrows with fixtures against Aberdeen and Rangers on the horizon after that.
McGregor though isn’t fazed and reckons the calmness introduced to the squad by former manager Brendan Rodgers will see them through.
As quoted by The Scottish Sun, the Scotland international said:
Staying calm is something that we’ve always tried to stick with in this group, probably since Brendan Rodgers came in. There was that real calmness. Games are going to be frantic, but we just stay calm, and we’ve been in these moments a lot.
You just learn by experience to keep calm, and now the manager has come in and has kept that same message. It’s just about experience in these big moments.
It’s amazing the character of these boys to just keep churning out results, and in big games too. It’s not easy to keep doing it time and time again. It shows how good these players are and their mentality and hunger.
It helps that we’ve been in that position so many times now in the last few years. You become experienced in those moments when the game is on a knife-edge.
Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off against Steve Clarke’s side is another tricky encounter and they should prove tough to break down at Celtic Park, especially after a 5-1 hammering there earlier in the season.
Clarke and his side will do everything to avoid a repeat of that result and have already beaten Celtic this season, albeit on their own patch.
It’ll likely be a game about patience and the calmness McGregor talks about will be crucial in securing the result, especially if the crowd grow frustrated with a tight scoreline in the second half.
A win would put us a point away from the title with three games remaining, so it’s hugely important there are no slip ups.
Will Celtic get back to winning ways this weekend? Share your thoughts in the comments below…