He didn’t come all this way – and end up in Scottish football’s madhouse – for a quiet life. But even so, Ange Postecoglou can do without some of the noise which comes with the job of managing Celtic.
No dramas. No distractions. Just business. That’s the way the big Aussie likes it. And it’s why he could hardly see Giorgios Giakoumakis off the premises quickly enough after the Greek and his advisers started throwing their toys out of the pram towards the end of last year.
Postecoglou’s parting shot spoke volumes when asked if Giakoumakis had found himself a new club. “If you’re on Instagram, you’ll probably get the details before me”. Or words to that effect. And it didn’t need subtitles to work out the manager’s message. So it’s no wonder Postecoglou has found such a kindred spirit in captain Callum McGregor, a player who personifies the same no-fuss all-focus approach to winning football matches.
McGregor clocked up his 400th game in a Celtic shirt just the other week. It’s hard to recall any time during that period when the Scotland stalwart has uttered a single word out of place.
And the sound of silence was music to Postecoglou’s ears last week too when another transfer window came and went without the need to have any of those awkward conversations with the man who wears the armband. “Yeah, that’s probably why I don’t bump him up on a weekly basis! You know, I’m quite happy with that,”
Postecoglou smiled wryly when asked if he was relieved not to have received any calls about his skipper during the January sales. “But a lot of that is down to Callum himself.
“With a lot of these things it’s often the players themselves who push their representatives to look for opportunities. I’m sure Cal will have had opportunities. In fact, I’m definite on that. But the fact is you don’t hear about it and that’s testament to his character. And also the people around him.
“Other players in his position would probably advertise the fact they’ve knocked back this club and that club and they’re not interested in going here or there. But that’s not who he is.
“That’s not his character so I wouldn’t take the fact that he doesn’t get talked about like there hasn’t been interest. I can guarantee there would have been from the highest level for Callum. But he’s really proud of the fact he represents this football club.
“He loves his role as captain and he really wants to leave a mark here. It’s a credit to him that he continues to do so.”
McGregor was back doing what he does best in Perth on Sunday when he glided serenely through a pockmarked midfield while keeping Celtic’s title defence ticking over nicely. And star winger Jota admits his boss was spot on when he said these players are ‘privileged’ to share a dressing room with their softly spoken leader.
The Portuguese attacker said: “We do feel privileged to share a dressing room with him. Callum is someone who is very important in our dressing room.
“He makes us feel welcome and helps us to perform in the best way we can in every game. So he’s definitely someone to look at and follow his example. We are just grateful that we have someone like him.
“It’s not just him though, we have a big group with good personalities, and we just try to help each other the best way we can. He reached out to me when I first joined the club – like he does with everyone. I think that sort of thing is something that a captain must do, and he is a perfect example of that.
“He just wants you to feel welcome and to help you perform in the best way you can.”
With Jota now returning to top form on the flanks, McGregor conducting the traffic from the centre of the pitch and others like Aaron Mooy blossoming in this Celtic’s side, it’s becoming difficult to see how this runaway juggernaut can be stopped. Sunday’s 4-1 win at St Johnstone re-established a nine point lead at the top of the table and kept Postecoglou and his players on course to smash through the 100-point barrier as they close in on a second successive league title.
Mooy, in particular, is emerging as a key cornerstone of the team. And the almost painfully reticent Aussie is another who is unlikely to be caught giving Big Ange any unnecessary earache as the campaign reaches its inevitable, screeching crescendo.
The manager said: “He’s just a quality footballer. I’m not the least surprised by him. I kind of know what’s in there and there’s a lot more to come. His influence is growing.
“Even good players were struggling with the pitch on Sunday but every time he got the ball he was so sure-footed and he kept the ball. His balance is unbelievable. He is really strong in terms of his core strength.
“On days like Sunday you give him the ball and not only will he keep it, he will take the right option. I thought we would get a lot of joy out wide against St Johnstone with the nature of the pitch.
“We had everything we needed to combine through central areas and in Kyogo and Aaron and Reo and the two wingers fed off that.”
Another game. Another win. Another step closer to achieving the ambition. And the less noise the better.
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