Congratulations to Callum McGregor on reaching 500 appearances for Celtic

The Celtic Star

·3 February 2025

Congratulations to Callum McGregor on reaching 500 appearances for Celtic

Congratulations to our skipper on his 500th appearance. Both Callum McGregor and James Forrest are playing proof that if you’re good enough you’ll make the grade…

Callum McGregor Motherwell v Celtic, 2nd February 2025. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou

Calmac – Celtic’s Captain Marvel

Congratulations to our skipper Callum McGregor who yesterday made his 500th appearance for the club at For Park yesterday afternoon in Celtic’s 3-1 win over Motherwell…

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Our record at grassroots has taken a kicking the past few years or so, and those wounds were re-opened in the last couple of days with the news that Daniel Cummings looks increasingly likely to be the latest in a long line of youth players to jump ship and head down south.

But what the critics of our youth development are conveniently forgetting is that Callum McGregor came through that very same youth system and is our current skipper, winning a sensational total of 23 honours in his 500 appearances for the club.

James Forrest applauds the support, Celtic v St Mirren, 14 December 2014. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

Jamesy is another Celtic legend

James Forrest also came through that same system, and he is only one honour away from being the most decorated player in the history of the club.

Two players who have made over 1000 appearances combined, winning titles and cups, while appearing regularly at the top level of European football. They’ve seen and done it all in football. Other than Calmac’s short loan spell at Notts County, they’ve done it all wearing the Hoops. Both could have gone to England to chase the casino jackpots in the mega-rich Premier League but decided to stay at Celtic.

League Cup, Liverpool FC – Notts County FC, Callum McGregor in action against Liverpool during the Football League Cup 2nd Round match at Anfield. 27.08.2013 Photo imago/HochZwei/International PROPAGANDA.

That should not only be a reminder to the critics that if your good enough you’ll make the grade at Celtic, but more importantly it should serve as an example to any younger player at the club that they can indeed make the grade if they put in the hard work and dedication.

Having no reserve league in Scotland is a disgrace

The trick I suppose, is that the club need to do their best to hang on to our young talent long enough for them to realise their potential. Having no reserve league in Scotland is a disgrace, frankly. Celtic can’t be blamed for this but it leaves our young talent playing the likes of Stirling University in the Lowland League aspiring for the chance to jump five tiers to the Scottish Premiership.

Callum McGregor with the Premier Sports Cup after Celtic’s victory over theRangers on 15 December 2024 at Hampden Park. Photo Kenny Ramsay

Different route to first team a decade or so ago

When players like Callum McGregor and James Forrest came through they weren’t playing in the Lowland League before breaking into the Celtic first team. In the past young players doing well in the reserves would be rewarded by a place on the bench for the first team and some minutes near the end of games.

Ben Doak and Greg Taylor of Celtic celebriate victory after the Cinch Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and theRangers at on February 02, 2022. (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)

As first team squads have got bigger that no longer seems viable at Celtic. The club did of course try to do that with Ben Doak who got some minutes in wins against both Dundee Utd and theRangers at Celtic Park three years ago but still opted to join Liverpool.

It’s a difficult situation for Celtic trying to develop the next generation of players Callum McGregor and James Forrest but also keeping them when they are emerging. How to solve that one is anybody’s guess. It doesn’t look like Celtic have the answers themselves.

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