Callum McGregor reveals how Ange defied the odds and the outside cynics

Callum McGregor has revealed that he had complete belief in Celtic winning the SPFL Premiership title from Day One of the 2021/22 season. 

The midfielder was in charge of the on-pitch handover but after trailing in 25 points in arrears the previous season the hoops found themselves three points adrift after losing their SPFL opener away to Hearts. 

That was on the back of a Champions League KO from Midtjylland with a couple of the players involved looking to get out before the transfer window closed. 

With a new manager in place the omens didn’t look promising but fairly quickly Ange Postecoglou had the building blocks in place for a spectacular success. 

At the end of August Cameron Carter-Vickers, Jota and Giorgos Giakoumakis joined the club, at the start of October the team won away in the SPFL for the first time in eight months with the League Cup delivered in December to add substance to the growing momentum.  

Asked how he would have rated Celtic’s chances of winning the SPFL title at the start of the season, McGregor told Sky Sports: 

Everyone on the outside probably gave us virtually no chance, but I think that’s the beauty of football. We had a group of players who were hungry, desperate to do well and hurt from the season before.  

The only people who had to believe were in that building and that’s what the manager kept saying to us, that’s what the players kept speaking about.  

It doesn’t matter what everyone else is saying, we are the guys who can go and make it happen and put in the performances and run for each other and have each other’s back. It was important that we had a strong mentality within the group. 

Tomorrow the SPFL publish the 22/23 fixture list, Celtic’s first batch of fixtures shouldn’t include trips to Tynecastle, Ibrox, Livingston or Pittodrie.