Celtic captain Callum McGregor is urging his teammates to channel the pain of their Champions League exit into future European success, drawing confidence from their performance against Bayern Munich.
Brendan Rodgers’ side went toe-to-toe with the Bundesliga giants, only to be dealt a crushing blow by Alphonso Davies’ late goal, securing a 1-1 draw on the night but a 3-2 aggregate defeat. Despite the heartbreak, McGregor sees their spirited display as a stepping stone.
“The belief is huge after a performance like that,” said the Scotland international. “We’ve gained so much experience over these 10 games, and next year, we’ll be even better.”
McGregor hailed the blend of youth and experience in the squad, emphasizing that if they can thrive in the Allianz Arena, they can take on any challenge.
Bayern’s victory propels them into the last 16, setting up a showdown with either Bayer Leverkusen or Atletico Madrid. But for McGregor, coming so close in Munich has only fueled Celtic’s hunger for more.
“We know we’re a good team, we know we can compete at this level, and we want more of these nights,” he added. “The hunger is there, and we’ll be ready to go again next season.”
Celtic Must Invest to Compete – Grant
Former Hoops midfielder Peter Grant echoed McGregor’s sentiments, praising the team’s “remarkable” display but stressing that maintaining progress will require investment.
“Celtic were excellent and surpassed expectations,” Grant said. “But to compete consistently, they need to spend big—especially with bigger clubs always circling their best players.”
While acknowledging that Celtic will never match Bayern’s spending power—“They spent nearly £100m on Harry Kane; that’s not happening here”—he believes the new Champions League format could work in their favor.
For now, Celtic will have to regroup, but one thing is clear—the fire to succeed in Europe burns stronger than ever.
