Falkirk midfielder Stephen McGinn has named the three Celtic players who he thinks are irreplaceable in Brendan Rodgers’ team.
The Bairns’ skipper was speaking recently on the BBC Scottish Football Podcast where he outlined how the Hoops are like a completely different team when they have a few of their key players fit and firing.
It is difficult to argue with McGinn’s assessment and it is no coincidence that the Bhoys’ best performance of the season at the weekend against Hearts was the first time this campaign that they had a clean bill of health.
Key to the 3-0 victory was captain Callum McGregor. He brushed off any concerns supporters may have about his fitness with a dominative midfield display.
The skipper and two of his teammates are vital for Rodgers, in the eyes of McGinn. “One of the big worries has been keeping your key players fit – guys like McGregor, Hatate and Carter-Vickers”, he said (BBC Scottish Football Podcast via RecordSport).
“When they are all in the team fully firing they are a totally different side.
“They are irreplaceable for Celtic. Watching the highlights last night one of the biggest cheers was Callum McGregor making that big recovery run [vs Hearts] because the last fixture – next week could obviously be a bit of league decider – at Celtic Park, Callum McGregor ran the show.
“He obviously wasn’t fully fit for the last game [vs Dundee] so to show that speed and to show that he might be back to full fitness was a massive boost for Celtic.”
Some fans were calling for Tomoki Iwata to come into the team amid McGregor’s drop-off at Dens Park but Rodgers wisely elected to keep the 30-year-old in the lineup against the Jambos.
Such a decision proved dividends as he put in a standout performance which holds him in great stead ahead of a potential title-deciding derby clash this Saturday.
