Callum McGregor in Celtic fan apology for Dortmund drubbing as skipper reassures punters 'that CAN'T happen again'

Callum McGregor insists Celtic owe their supporters an apology after their battering by Borussia Dortmund. The Hoops were hammered 7-1 by the Bundesliga big guns on a sorry night at Signal Iduna Park.

McGregor admitted the defeat was a sore one – and the punters who travelled in huge numbers deserved better. Celts had the backing of around 4000 fans in the stadium and several thousand more who headed to Germany without tickets. But their side got spooked by Dortmund and the roof caved in during nightmare 90 minutes in the Champions League. McGregor is looking for an immediate response at Ross County in the Premiership on Sunday – and in Italy when they face Atalanta in the Champions League in a few weeks.

The skipper said: "We can only apologise to the fans because when you play for Celtic and get beat 7-1 it is not good enough. Credit to them for sticking with us and we thank them for that. We know that can't happen again.

"I hate standing here making excuses when you lose heavily like that but I have to say a word about the supporters because all credit to them as they stuck with the team and that is a compliment to how well the team is playing and how well the season has started. We have to quickly get over it as we have another game on Sunday and the only way we can put that right is by winning.”

McGregor admitted the Hoops were humbled by Dortmund and the performance was unacceptable. He said: "Everybody will have a pop and that is what happens when you play for Celtic. I hate trying to make excuses when you get beat 7-1 because it is not acceptable.

"There are still positives because the season has started really well and the game against Slovan we were excellent. It shows you what the level is like when you don't