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Callum McGregor names 3 Celtic strengths that are key to Brendan Rodgers' Hampden record as boss
Callum McGregor reckons clarity within chaos is key to Celtic’s outstanding Hampden record under Brendan Rodgers.
The Parkhead boss has won 11 out of 11 matches at the National Stadium during two trophy-laden spells at the club. McGregor believes the gaffer’s workings set players up perfectly for big moments in big matches. As part of the sequence, Celtic have taken care of Aberdeen on four of those National Stadium occasions. But, although successful, it has not always been serene for the Hoops.
Rodgers’ team needed a last-gasp winner from Tom Rogic to win the 2017 Scottish Cup Final and their last Hampden meeting was even more dramatic when going to penalties after a 3-3 extra-time draw in April. McGregor said: “Yeah, it was a crazy game. The way the scoring went was really random. But that’s the type of chaos that can happen in these games. It’s always important that you find a way through that and obviously that was penalties.
“Hopefully we can have more control this time and it’s a bit easier for us but that’s the type of day that can fool you. You’ve got to have all aspects of the game to bring that together to make you win it.
“That’s just a by-product of the clarity from the manager and the experience. When you add all those things together, that’s where you want to arrive in those moments, where you’re clear and you understand even if there is a bit of chaos in the game, you’re trying to find the calm and get the team back playing the way they should.
“You’re going to have difficult moments and you have to be ready to deal with that if you want to progress. When the manager came in, there was obviously a clear idea and identity in the way he wants his teams to work.
“We’ve seen that the last time and this time as well. I think it’s just normalising big situations where, when you arrive in those moments, nothing fazes you. The way you train, prepare, live your life, that builds you towards those big moments.
“When you’re a team that wants to be successful then you have to arrive into those moments and be comfortable in the pressure. That’s probably one of the biggest things he did bring with him, that confidence and calmness.
“His record is fantastic and that comes from believing in yourself, believing in the group, having the calmness to negotiate any difficult moments. The way he trains the players on a daily basis is the whole aspect of the game, even the psychological game of the big moments.
“When you arrive there you have to be calm. The more times you experience that, the easier it is when you get to this point where the big prizes are on offer. You’re calmer, you know what you want to do, you know how the picture should look and you’re ready to react to it when you need to.”
McGregor typifies the calmness in stressful moments and he added: “In life, the first time you do something new, then of course you have that feeling of anxiety.
“But the more experience you get, the older you get, you realise that once you find that pattern and you find that sweet spot, then it becomes another day at work. You have to be calm to bring the best out of yourself. Be clear and understand what you want to do. So I think it gets easier with time.
“I don’t mean that as in you don’t understand the importance of the game, of course you do. But to be overawed with these big situations when you get to pressure moments then, if you let yourself be distracted by anything else, then it makes what is already a difficult day even harder.
“If you’re not clear in your thought process when the pressure comes on top of you, it makes it more difficult to see the picture clearly.”
Having run Celtic close in the spring, Aberdeen were at it again a fortnight ago in Glasgow’s East End, battling to a fightback 2-2 draw. McGregor said: “If we get the third goal before half-time, I think the game is pretty much done at that point.
“But it just shows you the resilience of their group. They’re totally committed to what they’ve been asked to do. They’ve got the confidence and the momentum from the start of the season.
“So yeah, it’s a little bit of a lesson for us but it just sharpens the mind that if you don’t take the chances when you’re on top against anyone, then the momentum of the game will change at some point.
“What Aberdeen have shown is they’re very much together, they know what they’re doing, there’s a clarity about how they work and they’ve been clinical in their game so far. So we want to limit as many chances that we give them as possible.”
