Notts County hit the jackpot with memorable loan deal - it's not Jack Grealish | OneFootball

Callum McGregor enjoyed a fantastic loan spell with Notts County in the 2013/14 season.

Notts County fans have seen some fantastic talents play at Meadow Lane over the years, with the club making excellent use of the loan market.

The 2013/14 season proved an excellent example of this, with now-Everton star Jack Grealish launching his professional career in League One for Notts, alongside modern-day Celtic icon Callum McGregor, who also spent the year on loan at Meadow Lane.

While the young Grealish tormented defenders, Scottish midfielder McGregor would play an integral role as the Magpies secured their third-tier future in the most dramatic fashion, before going on to have an incredibly successful career north of the border with Celtic.

Callum McGregor's year at Meadow Lane

After impressing in Celtic's youth setup, McGregor, like Grealish, would get his first taste of professional football for Notts in England's third tier.

He joined the club on a five-month loan deal and was entrusted with a start on the very day he signed. Sensationally, he scored the deciding goal in a 3-2 victory against Fleetwood Town in the opening round of the EFL Cup.

With what would become a trademark goal throughout his career, he opened his Notts account with a strike from outside the box, flying into the opposite corner.

The Magpies saw their cup run come to an end in the next round as they fell to a 4-2 defeat against Liverpool at Anfield. McGregor, though, put in a Man of the Match performance.

"With McGregor on the right and Jack Grealish on the left both cutting inside, it was brilliant watching the pair of them, a breath of fresh air," said County's all-time top goalscorer Les Bradd.

"The manager at the time let them loose to do their own thing, to play freely as football should be played, and Callum was always so entertaining to watch."

Following the expiration of his original loan deal, he would be linked with Champions-elect Wolves.

However, player-manager Shaun Derry, appointed following the sacking of Chris Kiwomya, was adamant that McGregor would return for the second half of the season, and he did.

McGregor would be less impactful under Derry in comparison to the season's opening months, though the ex-QPR defender insisted, just how important the Scottish midfielder was to the Magpies' great escape.

"If you look back at his time at Notts County, the majority of his goals came before I came in, when I arrived, he had to show a little bit of patience because we were in a dogfight, relegation odds-on favourites. He needed to show patience at certain times.

"I always knew he was such a reliable character that when I wanted to bring him on or when he played, I'd always get a top performance out of him."

A 3-2 defeat away at Tranmere in March left the club eight points adrift of safety in League One, and former chairman Ray Trew had even called Derry to discuss the budget for League Two the following year. However, what followed was a remarkable run of form.

In the final home match of the season against Swindon, McGregor sealed a 2-0 win in the 99th minute to secure what would be their sixth win in eight matches heading into the final day.

Derry's side needed to pick up just a point to secure survival, and they did so against Oldham, with 5,000 travelling supporters in attendance.

McGregor's time at Meadow Lane would come to an end with the club still in the third tier, and while just three of his 12 League One goals came in the second half of the season, his early exploits were an integral reason as to why Notts still had a chance of securing safety towards the back end.

With 14 goals in all competitions, McGregor would return to Celtic to kickstart what would be a sensational career north of the border, with ex-County boss Derry saying: "I had absolutely no doubt in my mind he was going to go back and play for Celtic - it was a foregone conclusion."

Callum McGregor becomes one of Celtic's greats

In 2018, McGregor looked back on the loan spell fondly, with the Magpies allowing him to develop as a player and grow as a character as a result of a brutal relegation battle.

McGregor would make his debut in a Champions League qualifier for Celtic the following season, scoring the winner against Icelandic side KR Reykjavík, before he netted on his Scottish Premiership debut against St. Johnstone.

As of 2025, McGregor has won 10 league titles, six Scottish cups, and eight League Cups, all while being capped 63 times for his country.

He also scored Scotland's only goal at the rescheduled Euro 2020, their first tournament in 23 years.

Still going strong at 32, the midfielder netted eight goals for Celtic as they won the league once again in 2024/25, and is Celtic's club captain under Brendan Rodgers.

Putting his name among Celtic's greats, McGregor's career was launched at Meadow Lane, where he is still remembered fondly to this day for his loan exploits alongside Grealish.

A serial winner and a fantastic character in the dressing room, McGregor's Notts County spell shaped a fantastic player who is still shining to this day, while the club landed the man whose goals guided them to safety in a time of need.