Celtic captain Callum McGregor top of Champions League list

After Saturday’s emphatic League Cup semi-final win over Aberdeen, Celtic's focus switches to the UEFA Champions League. The competition has often been a roller coaster ride for the club and that's been the case this season so far. Let's hope the Hoops reach a high in midweek when they welcome RB Leipzig to Parkhead.

A brilliant and record win against Slovan Bratislava was followed by a night to forget, one can only hope, against Borussia Dortmund. Then they made the trip to Italy to face Atalanta. The 0-0 draw there may have only brought a single point, but the performance and clean sheet made it another high note for the Hoops. 

Adapting to the different pressures and challenging opponents in Europe has not been easy for Celtic. A couple of their players though have stood out among the best in Europe over the first three matches.

UEFA measure all aspects of a player's performance and include factors like the distance they have covered on the pitch and their top running speed. Both are vital elements in the way Brendan Rodgers wants his team to play. It looks as though two players have taken that on board.

Celtic captain Callum McGregor top of Champions League list

Callum McGregor is officially number one in the Champions League this season so far when it comes to distance covered. He’s clocked up 37 km over the first three games. That puts him ahead of Bayern Munich's Joshua Kimmich at second. Of note too is Arne Engles, close behind in ninth with 35.5 km. That shows how much work the Celtic midfield has been putting in, a lot of which might go unnoticed on television.

Then if we take a look at top speed, perhaps surprisingly, it’s not Daizen Maeda who ranks as the fastest Celtic player. The Japanese forward is in tenth place with a speed of 35.4 km/h. Ahead of him though and in second place overall is Nicolas Kuhn. He’s been measured at 35.9 km/h.

Those are impressive measures. Undoubtedly, Rodgers will want more of the same from both McGregor and Kuhn in the remaining Champions League games. With four points after three matches qualifying for the next phase is within reach. The tie against RB Leipzig will be a big test, but at home, anything is possible in terms of a result.