Cost £0, now worth £6.75m: Celtic hit the jackpot on “outstanding” £30k-p/w machine - opinion

Celtic have shown over the past few years that they are not shy when it comes to spending money on bringing new players to the club that can strengthen their squad and push the team forward.

However, it seems as though one of their most valuable players at this moment in time is one that the club didn’t need to spend a penny on.

As a product of the Hoops’ youth academy, the midfielder made his senior debut back in July 2015 in a Champions League qualifying clash against KR Reykjavik under former Celtic manager Ronny Deila.

Since then, the 28-year-old has racked up a total of 369 appearances for the Parkhead side across all competitions, scoring 57 goals and providing 67 assists along the way.

With 2242 minutes under his belt in the league this season across 26 appearances, Carl Starfelt and Cameron Carter-Vickers are the only outfield players to have had more time on the pitch than the Hoops midfielder, highlighting how important he is to the team.

In those appearances, the Scotland international has earned himself an overall performance rating of 7.14 according to WhoScored, making him the joint-seventh highest rated player currently in Ange Postecoglou’s squad alongside Kyogo Furuhashi, who has eight league goals to his name.

Praised for his “outstanding” performances in the past by the 56-year-old Hoops boss, the £30k-per-week maestro has undoubtedly turned himself into a vital figure for the club, especially since the manager named him as the new Celtic captain following the departure of Scott Brown last year.

Back in October 2014, not long after he made his senior debut for the Parkhead club, Transfermarkt rated McGregor’s market value listed at £675k, whereas it now stands at £6.75m, making him the most valuable