‘They’re wrong’ – Celtic captain delivers clear statement

The curtains are down on Celtic’s 2021/22 season, and it was a grand success, with the Hoops winning the Scottish League Cup and the Premiership. Losing to the Rangers in the Scottish Cup semi-final, the club missed out on their chance of winning a fifth treble in six years. But overall, the Glasgow giants should be very satisfied with how their campaign went, considering all the odds that were stacked against them throughout.

But now that the club season is over, eyes will turn towards international football. And there, a crucial tie awaits the Scotland national team as they will host Ukraine in the World Cup qualification play-off semi-final. The winners will face Wales in the final.

Callum McGregor was an absolute standout in his first season as Celtic captain and his leadership in the middle of the park is a trait that the Scottish team could need to rely on to win a game of this magnitude.

The Scotland national team will need to be focussed on the task at hand against Ukraine, although with everything else going on in the world, the result on the night might not be in focus.

‘They’re wrong’ – Celtic captain delivers Scotland statement before game against Ukraine

Ukraine are in the middle of war at the moment and of course, that is much more important than any game of football could ever be. Despite sympathizing with the situation of the war-torn nation, on the pitch, McGregor’s focus will be on getting a result for the Scotland national team. As reported by the Scottish Daily Express, he said:

"“When the game kicks off, we have to go.“If anybody expects us to do anything other than that, they’re wrong.“We appreciate the situation. It’s really tough to see. We flick on the news and something else has happened. It’s horrific.“But we have a game of football to play and they will be just as motivated as us to win. That’s sport. When the game comes, you have to put everything to one side and do everything to win.”"

For Ukraine, there will be no shortage of motivation to win the game against Scotland and ultimately qualify for the World Cup, in the middle of what has been one of the most challenging times in the history of the nation.

On the other hand, this is a huge game for Scotland as well, as they will be looking to play their first World Cup since 1998. And one has to suspect that if they are to do that, the Celtic captain will have to be on the top of his game and play a big part.