Callum McGregor: Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers hopes to have captain back before Old Firm clash with Rangers | Football News

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has been encouraged by the progress of Callum McGregor as he looks to get his captain back to fitness after the international break.

The midfielder will miss his third consecutive game when Celtic host St Johnstone on Saturday as he nurses an Achilles problem, and he was left out of the Scotland squad ahead of the upcoming friendlies against the Netherlands and Northern Ireland.

However, Rodgers is hopeful that the 30-year-old could be available for the visit of Livingston on March 30 before they face rivals Rangers at Ibrox on April 7.

« He is feeling good but he needs to get some clearance work in over the next week to 10 days and we will assess it for the Livingston game when we get back, » the Celtic boss said.

Cameron Carter-Vickers is set to return from a hamstring issue when Celtic host Saints but Liam Scales is likely to drop out of central defence.

« Cameron is fine, he has trained and looks good so that’s great he is available, » Rodgers said.

« Liam will miss the game, we think, he has picked up a knock in training.

« He has been so robust, everything about him has been great since he came into the team. Sadly he misses this game because he has played every other minute but he should be back after the international break. »

Luis Palma, Maik Nawrocki and Reo Hatate are also working to a similar timeline while Yang Hyun-jun completes a two-match suspension on Saturday.

Scottish Premiership and SWPL on Sky Sports

Sky Sports – This season up to 48 cinch Premiership games will be available across Sky Sports’ flagship channels, including Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event, plus at least five SWPL matches. From 2024/25, up to 60 cinch Premiership will be live on Sky Sports, in addition to the SWPL.

Sky Sports News – Running 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Scottish football fans can enjoy Sky Sports News’ (channel 409) rolling editorial coverage of the cinch Premiership and SWPL throughout the season.

Sky Sports Digital – Follow all the latest from Scottish football across SkySports.com and app, including exclusive features and interviews, plus dedicated live blog coverage, in-game clips from matches live on Sky Sports and free highlights.

Sky Sports Social – Alongside coverage and visibility for the league across all Sky Sports’ main social media channels, the bespoke X page @ScotlandSky (formerly known as Twitter) will continue to be the home of all Scottish football content on Sky Sports.

Highlights show – Tune in for a dedicated round-up from the cinch Premiership every week on Sky Sports Football.

Sky Sports is the home of domestic football in the UK and Ireland, with action from the Scottish Premiership, Scottish Women’s Premier League, Premier League, WSL, EFL, and more.

Follow Celtic with Sky Sports

Follow every Celtic game in the Scottish Premiership this season with our live blogs on the Sky Sports website and app, and watch match highlights for free.

Want the Celtic latest? Bookmark our Celtic news page, check out Celtic’s fixtures and Celtic’s latest results, watch Celtic’s goals and video, keep track of the Scottish Premiership table and see which Celtic games are coming up live on Sky Sports.

Get all this and more – including notifications sent straight to your phone – by downloading the Sky Sports Scores app and setting Celtic as your favourite team.

Get Sky Sports on WhatsApp!

You can now start receiving messages and alerts for the latest breaking sports news, analysis, in-depth features and videos from our dedicated WhatsApp channel!

Find out more here…