Callum McGregor epitomises Ange's Celtic mantra but captain looks to avoid disappointment by proving he never stops

Ange Postecoglou coined the phrase We Never Stop but Callum McGregor had copyrighted it long before the Aussie hit these shores and changed everything for Celtic.

The armband strapped to McGregor’s bicep might just be a battery charger as he has powered his way to 20 winners’ medals, 14 wins in 14 cup finals and five Trebles. The midfielder’s stats are as impressive as his medal collection. Fifty-eight appearances for club and country in 2017-18, and since then the figures have read 69, 58, 64, 59 and – if he plays in the two remaining Scotland games this term against Norway and Georgia– McGregor will have racked up another 53 games.

He literally never stops and while McGregor wore the look of a very contented man on Saturday night, he offered an interesting insight into what drives the engine inside him. He said: “I always say that the only thing that’s guaranteed in football is disappointment and you just try to limit how many times you feel disappointed in your career.

“That’s what drives you – so you get days like this and when you do, you want to enjoy them. It’s good [medal tally] and it’s something I’m proud of. You want to be known as a winner.

“When you play football as a young kid, all you want to do is win and I’ve managed to carry that through my career.” And then some.

Yet the 29-year-old from Glasgow’s Easterhouse never loses sight of the fact that his personal achievements would be impossible without those around him. “I don’t think any of it happens if you’re not at a hugely successful football club where winning is the culture,” he added.

“We have managed to build that over the last few years. It’s amazing to be part of that. When you are a young kid and you play football, all you want to do is win.