Callum McGregor: We are determined to compete in the Champions League again | OneFootball

The stage is almost set for tomorrow night’s UCL play-off round first leg at Celtic Park, where Celtic will take on FC Kairat of Kazakhstan under the Paradise lights (KO: 8PM).

The Hoops enjoyed a successful Champions League campaign last season, which culminated in a knockout tie against Bayern Munich for the last 16 of the tournament.

Brendan Rodgers’ men battled hard at the Allianz Arena and were within seconds of taking the match to extra-time when a late equaliser from Bayern brought an end to their European journey for the season.

With the champions of Scotland finalising their preparations ahead of tomorrow night’s huge match at Paradise, Callum McGregor says that he and his team-mates want to be at Europe’s top-table again.

Speaking to the media at Celtic Park this afternoon, the Celtic skipper said: “I feel that the team are ready. We’ve started the season well and are building nicely.

“It’s a really good game for us, especially with the first one being at home, so we want to maximise that as much as we can.

“The most important thing is that over the two legs, we do enough to get through.

“So now we have to earn the right the same as everyone else who has gone through the qualification process.

“They’re all good teams when you get to this level and you need to treat everyone with respect.

“We know it’ll be a difficult game, we have to be super organised and understand the moments in the game.”

Callum McGregor's full press-conference is available to watch below

More pre-match build up

MATCH CENTRE

Fixtures

Celtic Vs. Kairat - Wed, Aug 20th 2025, 20:00