Celtic are at a crossroads and have to find a settled team – Callum McGregor

Callum McGregor spoke of Celtic being at a “crossroads” following their shock Viaplay Cup exit to Kilmarnock on Sunday.

The Hoops captain didn’t like what he witnessed from final season’s treble winners at Rugby Park, the place Marley Watkins’ second-half objective sparked an unlikely autopsy into Celtic’s last-16 demise.

Boss Ange Postecoglou left for Tottenham at the tip of the season after finishing the clear sweep and winger Jota and defender Carl Starfelt have additionally gone, whereas returning supervisor Brendan Rodgers was with out Alistair Johnston, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Reo Hatate and Oh Hyeon-gyu for the journey to Ayrshire.

Rodgers gave a debut to Swedish defender Gustaf Lagerbielke alongside fellow new signing Maik Nawrocki, with a first begin for summer time recruit Odin Thiago Holm, whereas one other new face, Yang Hyun-jun, got here off the bench.

The exit from a cup competitors Celtic have gained six instances within the final seven years stung McGregor, and the Scotland midfielder recalled a 1-0 cinch Premiership defeat at Livingston in September 2021 – a fourth loss in 5 video games beneath Postecoglou which left them trailing leaders Rangers by 4 factors, earlier than they recovered to win the title and League Cup.

McGregor mentioned: “We didn’t have sufficient high quality. I believe that was evident to see. We began hitting lengthy passes, which isn’t us. I don’t imply good passes by way of attempting to play in behind, it was simply type of launching the ball and hoping for the perfect.

“That’s disappointing, that we don’t stick to the ideas that we all know work for us.

“It’s a large reminder that in cup soccer in case you don’t flip up on the day you have completely no proper to assume which you can simply come and win video games of soccer.

“Probably as a result of our cup document has been so good that’s what everybody thinks, that you simply simply roll up and it occurs. It by no means occurs like that.

“Firstly we have to look internally, us as gamers. Did we do sufficient? The reply is not any. We have to study from it and be certain that it doesn’t snowball into two outcomes, three outcomes, 4 outcomes.

“We have to find the solutions shortly and find a method to settle this new group of gamers. I believe that’s possibly what you get with a new group which is simply at its infancy.

“I in all probability bear in mind again to two years in the past at this level, or barely later, into September, once we misplaced at Livingston and it was a lot the identical.

“Now we are at a crossroads on this group as properly. We have misplaced a lot of key gamers, a lot of huge gamers for us, so we have to find a new team.

“We have to find a settled team and then return to the ideas that make us a good team.

“You will get unhealthy outcomes and it’s the way you deal with that, the way you arise and be counted within the coming days and weeks.

“Again, it’s simply reinforcing the work we are doing on the coaching floor. Trying to settle everyone as shortly as we will, settle into the sample and the rhythm that we would like to play.

“It’s simply repetition in coaching and attempting to find that steadiness actually, actually shortly.

“With this outcome all of us have to realise that we have to go fairly shortly. It was related at this level two years in the past once we put ourselves beneath strain.

“Now you have to react, you have to find something within yourself and within the team and within the group that sparks us into life. Because that’s what we need to do now.”