Aston Villa star Jack Grealish has given his opinion about Celtic midfielder Callum McGregor and believes that he will be a success in the Premier League.
The Englishman, who is valued at £22.5 million (as per Transfermarkt), was recently talking to the Daily Record recently and he praised McGregor as a player who could go down as a success in England’s top tier, if he ever joins a Premier League club in the future.
The midfielder said: “If he ever did come to the Premier League, 100 per cent he’d be a success. He is playing Champions League or Europa League every season, he plays in the Scotland team every single time, so I can’t see why he’d want to leave.
“But the Premier League is regarded by most as the best league in the world, so you never know. But if he comes here, he will be a success. But more than that, they [John McGinn and McGregor] are both brilliant lads.”
Celtic through and through
McGregor is a product of the famed Celtic youth academy and has risen up the ranks at the club since his childhood days.
So far this season, the midfielder has already played as many as 26 times in all competitions for the Hoops. He has racked up a tally of five goals and two assists. In the Scottish Premiership though, McGregor has appeared 12 times and scored two goals, assisting once.
Since he made his debut, McGregor has continued to rise up the ranks at Celtic Park. He has played 250 times in all competitions. During this time, the midfielder has managed to find the back of the net 41 times and has bagged a tally of 48 assists as well.
In the summer of 2013, he had a solitary loan spell at English side Notts County. He impressed during his stint as he had appeared 41 times in all competition for the Nottingham-based side, scoring once.
TIF Tactics
As things stand, McGregor is Celtic’s fourth-longest serving player. All that, despite being just 26 currently. He is only behind Scott Brown, James Forrest and Tom Rogic on the list of the longest-serving players.
Grealish’s comparisons with John McGinn are fair. Both of them are hardworking central midfielders and belong to a similar age profile too. He has that tenacity and workrate that always works out well in the Premier League.
For someone who has played in the Champions League and Europa League on multiple occasions, adapting to the Premier League will not be a huge task.
As for Villa, they have as many as five midfield options currently, following a spending spree this past summer. The midfield trio of McGinn, Grealish and defensive midfielder Marvelous Nakamba is currently the first-choice at Villa Park.
But the club has enough depth because of the presences of Conor Hourihane and Douglas Luiz in that part of the pitch. However, with McGinn having been linked with a move to Manchester United, Celtic could well consider McGregor as a potential replacement for his compatriot.