Callum McGregor in bold Celtic new hero cry as Kyogo Furuhashi lands in France

Callum McGregor says the impending departure of key striker Kyogo Furuhashi will create a platform for the club to “make their next hero” as he hailed Celtic’s ability to consistently replace their big names.

The skipper produced an impressive performance in the dramatic 1-0 Champions League win over Young Boys on Wednesday as Celtic booked their place in the knock-out stages of the tournament for the first time in 12 years. They had to rely on a late own goal from Swiss captain Loris Benito to seal their spot in the play-offs, recovering from three chalked-off Furuhashi goals and a missed penalty from Arne Engels.

Shortly after the mammoth win though, reports from France emerged that Furuhashi could have played his final game in a Celtic shirt, with the 29-year-old closing in on a move to Ligue 1 outfit Rennes. After the game, McGregor responded to the news, saying: “How will be be remembered? For big goals. Big games. A Legend? A modern day legend, definitely. He’s so important to the team, and it feels a little premature because I’m talking about him like he’s not here - he’s still here.

The Celtic team celebrate the winning goal against Young Boys. Cr: SNS Group. | SNS Group

“If that is to be his last game, he’s been outstanding. Coming from the other side of the world, and his impact has been fantastic. But Celtic create new heroes all the time. That is something I’ve seen so many times here, one guy leaves and everyone is asking ‘how are we going to replace him?’, and two weeks later we’ve completely forgot about him. I’m still here though, aye!” McGregor laughed.

Lead by the outstanding McGregor, Wednesday’s win not only secures Celtic’s place in the play-offs, but also a chance of finishing in the top eight of the standings. Currently 18th, a win over Aston Villa combined with favourable results elsewhere could move Brendan Rodgers’ men into the top eight. But despite the imminent departure of Furuhashi, the skipper feels the club is in a healthy position heading into a hectic second-half of the campaign.

“We knew we wanted to come and win the game, and that would relieve a little bit of pressure on us,” added McGregor. “It was a fantastic performance all round. First-half outstanding again, really should have been a couple up. Second-half, game changes a little bit, you’ve got to stay in the game and wait on the momentum changing. But that’s what this team have gotten really good, especially in European football, being mature against the ball and knowing you can’t be 100% mile an hour all the time.

The captain salutes the Celtic fans at full-time. | SNS Group

“The penalty [miss] could have deflated the team and the stadium a little, but the response to that is actually really good. Again, the team are playing with maturity at this level, and I thought we got exactly what we deserved with the winner. We want to finish strong [against Aston Villa], that will give us more belief.

“We’ve been he dominant team in most games, especially here [at Celtic Park]. There’s been a real progression since that first game, we’re a good side at this level. The profile of the team is brilliant, we get goals, we can defend. The players should be so proud of themselves, because it is very, very tough to do. Its been 12 years, we’ve had multiple attempts, the gap gets bigger financially every year, and we have to be at maximum level and over seven games so far, we’ve pretty much been there and got what we deserved.”