Celtic: Martin O’Neill agrees with Callum McGregor on issues

Celtic still hold a four-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership, and will extend that to seven if they beat Falkirk on Sunday, with Rangers in League Cup action.

The defending champions have only lost once, at home to Rangers, in the league but have three Europa League defeats from three amid fan discontent and a boycott of some games by the Green Brigade fans group.

McGregor is not the first senior player to speak about Celtic’s lack of control in games, with defender Cameron Carter-Vickers saying after their Glasgow derby loss that the team were “too random” in their play.

O’Neill, though, says the group will improve as more players get up to speed across the course of the winter and in the meantime are doing enough in the league.

“I come in here [to the press conference] every single week and I’m most of the time pretty buoyed by things,” the Northern Irishman said.

“Don’t try and throw a lot of divides in at the end of the day, we’re doing fine.

“A lot of lads here didn’t even do pre-season with us. A number of players came in quite late on, so it will take time for us.

“So we need to hang in there, and at this minute I think we’re hanging in.”