If the Celtic captain misses out, that creates an opportunity for another.

Amidst everything else the boss said yesterday, there was one piece of potentially very unpleasant news—Callum McGregor might not be fit for the game.

Now, Callum sat in front of the media and said he would do his best to prove his fitness, so it’s entirely possible that even if he’s still struggling, he’ll be ready to take part. But we have to consider the possibility that he won’t be.

For starters, I very much doubt this is Celtic indulging in gamesmanship.

That’s not Rodgers’ style.

It’s not the kind of thing Brendan does. Of course, plenty of Ibrox fans and their various online haunts will claim we’re simply pretending McGregor is out when he’ll actually play. I don’t think so.

If both he and the manager say he’s been struggling, then that’s the reality. I still expect he’ll be in the team, but this isn’t some ruse.

So, what if he doesn’t make it? What’s the plan? Well, this is where we lament the injury to Paulo Bernardo. If he were fit, we’d have that extra option. As it stands, we still have one—it may not be quite as good in some people’s eyes, but I think it could be a very interesting one indeed. We’d have to drop Arne Engels back into the defensive midfield area, and instead of Bernardo, we’d bring in Luke McCowan.

Now, here’s the thing about that. I don’t think there’s a single Celtic fan with any fears about McCowan’s ability to handle the game or the occasion. In fact, I think he would thrive in it. He’d be excellent. His energy, aggression, and willingness to take a shot on goal would all be assets. As long as Arne did his bit deeper, I don’t think we’d have much reason to be concerned if Callum didn’t play.

There’s also the possibility of playing Jeffrey Schlupp in central midfield. I don’t like that idea—although he’s done it before and is capable—because that would mean putting Greg Taylor back on the left. And to be honest, I want to see how Schlupp performs on the left in the derby. I want to see him out there as a main man.

He’s added something to the team in the games he’s played so far, and it wouldn’t make sense to get him up to speed only to drop him now.

So those are pretty much our two options. I think we’ll go with McCowan, and I think we’ll benefit from that in an attacking sense. His energy, drive, willingness to take on a man, and ability to get into the penalty area will increase our attacking options to the point where they could become overwhelming.

There’s no scenario where losing your captain for a game like this is a good thing. There’s no way to dress it up as anything other than an issue. But this is why you build a big squad. This is why you have backup players in every position. Even though Bernardo is out, we still have McCowan as an option.

Where we might suffer slightly is in our ability to make changes off the bench. We usually rotate the midfield during the game, and if Callum doesn’t make it, that’s going to be impossible.

We will miss his leadership and his quality, but we have quality all over the team. And we have leaders elsewhere. If we’re looking for a stand-in captain, the choice will be between the goalkeeper, Carter-Vickers, and Alistair Johnston. As much as I like the idea of Carter-Vickers wearing the armband, I’d actually like to see it go to Johnston for this one—presupposing, of course, that McGregor doesn’t play.

They say every crisis is an opportunity, and while I wouldn’t go as far as to call this a crisis, for McCowan and the Celtic team, I think there’s an opportunity if Callum isn’t fit. In fact, there’s even been some discussion in the forums about whether McCowan should start ahead of Hatate, who hasn’t exactly set the world on fire in these games lately.

Come Sunday, we’ll know. But there’s a part of me that wants to see McCowan given a shot in a big game like this.

He’s earned it. He’s already justified his inclusion in matches of this magnitude before this season, and I think he’ll step up to the plate if the moment arrives. Obviously, missing Callum isn’t ideal, but it doesn’t have to be a disaster.

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