Callum McGregor has clearly brought his Celtic mentality to the Scotland scene, after bossing it both on and off the park last night.
McGregor was a stand-out for his country again last night, and showed he could thrive against some of the best midfielders around.
Spain may have made eight changes for last night’s defeat at Hampden, but they still had some immense midfield talent feature.
There are few better in world football than Manchester City’s Rodri, who played the entire game. Dani Ceballos plays his football for Real Madrid, while the much-hyped Gavi was a second-half substitute.
The image of McGregor surging away from the Barcelona superstar in the final minute of the game was an extremely pleasing one, and complimented his entire performance.
But McGregor is arguably just as important off the pitch as he is on it, and always seems to say the right thing in victory or defeat.
Many will remember him reminding his Hoops team-mates not to overdo the celebrations when we smashed Rangers 3-0 to go top of the Premiership last season.
Even though he isn’t Scotland captain, it seems like the message was similar last night.
Chatting to BBC Scotland in the mixed zone at Hampden, he said: “It’s probably a result we’ve been looking to pick up for a while.
“When you get more experience in the group and boys get more caps they start to feel better at this level.
“That’s what we have now: a really strong core with lots of caps and experience.
“But it’s important that we take the positives and keep our feet on the ground. By no means have we qualified.
“It’s been a great night. Hopefully the supporters enjoyed it. But when we come back in June we have to reset and go again.”
It’s great to hear that McGregor has taken his mentality from club football to the international scene. Scotland still have work to do, just like Celtic.
It’s also interesting to read his comments about players feeling better at the top level with more experience.
Perhaps that is where the secret to Champions League progress lies for Celtic. The more the likes of McGregor, Jota and Kyogo play at the very top level, the more they will be able to thrive.
If Scotland can go toe-to-toe and defeat a nation like Spain, then McGregor and Celtic can do similar at club level.
Last night will have done our skipper no harm at all.
In other news, Victor Wanyama has revealed why he urged Alistair Johnston to hit the gym at Celtic
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