Celtic’s Greg Taylor addresses his own fitness as defender allays fears over recent injury

Greg Taylor's importance to the Celtic cause this season meant that his recent fitness issues caused a certain level of consternation among the club's supporters.

The left-back was forced to sit out the 3-1 league win over Hearts in early March and was also left out of the Scotland squad last month due to what Steve Clarke described as a "little injury". Early withdrawals against Hibs and Ross County after the international break suggested something still wasn't quite right and there were doubts over whether he would be fit for the Old Firm derby two weeks ago. But having come through the full 90 minutes against both Rangers and Kilmarnock in Celtic's last two outings, Taylor insists he is now free from injury and ready to finish the season strongly.

“I feel much better to be honest, touch wood," he said. "You got through parts of the season when you maybe have a wee phase of feeling it. Sometimes you need to patch yourself together a bit but these last couple of weeks I’ve felt really good and ready to finish the season strong. It’s the same with everyone. The manager is massive on the squad being the reason we’ve been so successful thus far. We know there’s still a way to go, but the boys who come in always perform to the same level – which is a credit to the squad."

Celtic have a 12-point lead at the top of the Premiership but Taylor insists that will not result in them taking their foot off the gas at home to Motherwell on Saturday. “People are saying the season is done but that is not our attitude," he said. “Since right back at pre-season, we’ve taken each game at a time and all the focus has been on the next session, never mind the next game. The training was the same standard this week and we’ll be going again this weekend. Do you want to finish the season in style? Absolutely. It’s exactly that. I think you saw our mentality in the performance at Kilmarnock last week. That’s been the way all season and it will continue that way. We want to keep that going until the end of the season. There’s still a lot to play for and we’re ready for it."