Former boss compares old teammates Callum McGregor and Jack Grealish

By John McGinley

April 2, 2020

Celtic star Callum McGregor has been favourably compared to Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish by their former loan manager at Notts County, Shaun Derry, The Scottish Sun report.

Back before McGregor was a regular stand-out performer in the Hoops first-team, he was sent out on loan in the 2013/14 season to the English lower leagues to gain some vital experience.

It was there he played alongside the now much-hyped Grealish, excelling in an attacking role in support of the team’s striker.

He produced a fine return of 14 goals before returning to Glasgow and making a push into Ronny Deila’s plans.

Derry has been reminiscing about working with the duo as their manager, praising McGregor for his professionalism and adaptability.

As quoted by The Scottish Sun, he said: “Jack was a chirpy kid while Callum was much quieter and very respectful towards me. Being a couple of years older, he also understood the game a little more than Jack did.

“Callum also had a greater appreciation of the game than Jack did at that time.

“What Jack liked at training was playing in the mini bounce games we had. But Callum realised the value of the other stuff, the physical exercises and the tactical sessions. He was brilliant to work with.

“What probably impressed me more than anything was his attitude, especially since he’d moved to a different country and was away from home for the first time.

Aston Villa star Jack Grealish / (Photo by Visionhaus)

The paper say that Grealish is now valued at £70m, which just goes to show the enormous wealth floating around the English top-flight in comparison to Scotland, where McGregor could fetch a fee as much as £30m.

There’s little doubt that the Celtic star could be playing regularly at a higher level than the Scottish Premiership but it’s obviously fantastic that he’s committed his best years so far to the Bhoys.

Hopefully, that remains the case for many years to come.